THE HOGWART'S CONSPIRACY
by spitz
Summary: A story that takes place several years after Harry Potter has left the school. A new group of studenst get involved in a mysterious conspiracy


THE HOGWARTS CONSPIRACY  
  
CHAPTER ONE - "All Aboard"  
  
Kitty stood on the platform starring at the train, its hypnotic steam billowed up into the air like cotton candy. If one watched long enough, one would have seen that the steam spelled out the name of Kitty's new school, one letter at a time.  
  
She looked at the chaos of people on the platform. Their bustling about made her wonder if she was invisible, as no one seemed to notice her standing like a small statue in amidst the rush. Her parents had dropped her off at the station both happy because she had been accepted into the school and yet sad at seeing their daughter leaving for an entire year. Of course, unlike Kitty, they had no idea what really lay ahead of her.  
  
She had just dropped her bags off at the train's cargo compartment and was heading to the passenger cars, when she felt a sudden urge to not board the train. Danger lay ahead..for her?.no, not for her, for someone else?  
  
Lost in thought she was unexpectently flung forwards as a baggage cart slammed into her from behind.  
  
"Cripes O Friday. I'm sorry." A voice said from behind as Kitty picked herself up off the platform. Turning around she saw the face of a young boy, probably the same age as herself. He held a small wand in his hand. "It got away from me." He twiddled the wand in the air and the cart, loaded with all his baggage, reared up like a horse. The owl he had caged on top of his baggage hooted as its caged slipped precariously off the cart.  
  
The boy shouted as he whipped his wand at the cage. "Wingardium Leviosa." The cage hovered in the air.  
  
"BENJAMIN GEORGE MORRISON!" An angry voice shouted from behind. "Was that what I thought it was?"  
  
The frightened boy jumped about face. The cage would have dropped from the air if Kitty had not reached out and caught it. She quickly backed up as one of the tallest men she had ever seen came running down the platform, a stern look on his face. He had a bushy mustache and a cowboy hat and with his long legs he covered the length of the platform in only a few strides. The boy frantically shoved his wand into his back pocket.  
  
"Are you trying to get expelled before you even GET to the school?" he said as he grabbed the boy by the back of his shirt. With one arm he hoisted the boy into the air. The poor boy dangled quite high, his feet swinging aimlessly back and forth. The man pulled him in close to his face so that they were starring eye to eye. "You KNOW you're not allowed to practice magic yet."  
  
"Yes sir." The boy said meekly. "I was.I was just.I." he stuttered.  
  
The man put the boy back down on the ground and looked back over his shoulder and down the platform. "Thank goodness your Mother didn't see that." He winked at the boy. It was then that he saw Kitty, standing still and quiet holding the owl cage in her arms. He tipped his hat and nodded at the boy.  
  
The boy straightened his jacket and turned around to look at Kitty. "Thank you for your help. I'm sorry I knocked you down." He said very politely, very properly.  
  
Up until now Kitty had said nothing. The whole incident had happened rather fast. She passed the cage back to the boy.  
  
"I'm Ben." He said pushing the cage up onto the top of the cart. "What's your name?"  
  
"Kitty." She replied.  
  
"Are you lost?" The man said as he knelt down on one knee so that if he hunched over he was almost low enough to look into her face.  
  
"No..I was just.just."  
  
The whistle sounded from the train. The steam stopped pumping out letters and began pushing out steam in giant billowing white clouds. "ALL ABOARD!" A voice shouted from the train.  
  
"Come on then. You're both going to be late." The man said.  
  
"Yes sir." Ben replied as he started to shove his huge cart, this time without the aid of magic.  
  
Kitty followed as the Man ushered them down the platform.  
  
After depositing Ben's baggage at the appropriate car the Man then ushered them up to the passenger cars.  
  
"Bye son." The Man said.  
  
"Bye Dad." Ben replied.  
  
Kitty saw them both trying not to laugh as if there was some private joke she was missing.  
  
Suddenly they heard the train whistle blow a second time as a woman, who could only have been Ben's mother, came running down the platform, in what seemed to be slow motion, "Bye Sweetie..send us an owl soon..once you're settled.send us one once a week...no..everyday.....bye sweetie." The woman's speed steadily got faster as she ran towards them but it would not be fast enough to catch the train.  
  
Ben went red. Ben's father slide the door shut and grinned as the train pulled away. Looking out the window Kitty could just make out the start of a long conversation...or rather argument.  
  
"You're in trouble Mister!" Ben's Mother said as she caught up with her husband.  
  
"Me? For what?' the Man sheepishly grinned.  
  
The Woman reached behind him and pulled a wand out of his back pocket. She tapped him on the nose with it. "You'd dare use a Molasses Spell on me to keep me from seeing my son off on his big adventure? Why I should.."  
  
"Cripes O Friday Woman.he's going off to school..you're only making him more nervous.."  
  
Kitty didn't hear anymore of the conversation. The whistle sounded once more as they sped away from the station and into the countryside.  
  
CHAPTER TWO - "Unusual Circumstances"  
  
Kitty sat down on the bench in the empty train car across from Ben. Kitty could feel his nervousness.  
  
"What's your Owl's name?" Kitty asked, breaking the silence first.  
  
"My owl?...oh.. it's uh.her real name is Pfliachui but I call her Spooky"  
  
Kitty almost laughed at the name. "That's a good name for her." Kitty thought all Owls were a bit creepy-looking with their big starring eyes and head that turned almost all the way around. Maybe Ben felt the same about owls.  
  
"Is this your first year at the school?"  
  
Kitty nodded.  
  
"Mine too." Ben slid down the bench closer to the window where the countryside was speeding by. He gazed outside. "This looks just like home. I live in the country. I've never been to the city before. There were more people on the platform that I think I've ever seen in my entire life. My parents were happy that I got my letter but..but."  
  
"But you'd have rather stayed at home." Kitty finished his sentence.  
  
Ben nodded. "My dad thinks I'm going to be the best Quidditch player since Harry Potter."  
  
Kitty raised and eyebrow at the name. "Have you played much?" she asked.  
  
"Well.my Dad started taking me outside to fly as soon as I was old enough to sit on a broomstick. I reckon I'm pretty good." Ben reached into his tiny back pocket and rooted around for something. His pockets were very small but Kitty saw him pull out his wand, a bag of what looked like small rose shaped chocolates, a few cards, some Owl treats and a large envelope. Kitty recognized the envelope as he passed it to her. She too had received one just like it. It was the letter admitting them to Hogwarts School of Magic.  
  
Kitty opened the letter.  
  
"I'm on a scholarship." Ben said.  
  
Kitty raised and eyebrow as she read the details of Ben's admittance. It seemed that he had been scouted to play Quidditch on the school team.  
  
"You're that good?" Kitty said with a surprise. She had never read anything about scholarships to Magic School in the school's history book but then again, up until a few weeks ago, she had never read ANYTHING about Magic School.  
  
"Well..I have to play one year on the house team first and then in my second year if I hold up under the training I'll get to play on the school team against the other schools." Ben was grinning ear to ear with pride.  
  
The 'other' schools Hogwarts competed against were Beauxbatons, Durmstrang and MacDuffries, the newest Witch & Wizarding School to open up. After the unfortunate fatality of Cedric Diggory at the last Tri-Wizard Cup, over ten years ago, the School Board had opted to go back to school competition through the game of Quidditch.  
  
"You know.many of the players chosen for the School team are offered spots in the IPQ (International Professional Quidditch) when they graduate." It was clear to Kitty that playing in the IPQ was Ben's dream.  
  
Kitty handed the letter back to him and he shoved it back into his pocket still grinning.  
  
"So I'm sitting next to Hogwarts new champion."  
  
"Yes'm.or at least I hope to be."  
  
The train lurched and the contents of Ben's pockets that lay all over the seat slid onto the floor with a thud. Ben scrambled to pick them up. As he picked up his wand the train lurched again slamming him backwards. He accidentally flipped his hand and the wand sparked. The cushion beside Kitty exploded in a cloud of feathers.  
  
"Whoops." Ben said.  
  
Kitty swept the air with her arms trying to clear a path through the feathery chaos. "Do you know any other spells other than levitation and exploding pillows?" Kitty laughed.  
  
"Uh.well.uh no." Ben said shoving his wand safely away in his pocket. The last thing he needed was to bring the train officials down to their car. "The levitation one is the only one I've even been able to get to work. My Dad taught me that one to help him with moving the crops. The pillow one, well.. It was just an accident. My wands a little old."  
  
Kitty laughed again.  
  
Ben looked at her and smiled sheepishly. He wanted to ask her about where she lived, how much magic she knew, about her family and so on but was a little unsure as to how to ask. His tongue was tied, partly because of nerves, partly because something about this girl made him a bit jumpy.  
  
"My mom's not a Witch and my Dad's not a Wizard. I'm not sure why I was sent a letter in the first place." Kitty abruptly said as if she knew what Ben had wanted to ask. "I lived in a big city with my family when two weeks ago an Owl landed on our patio, dropped a letter in my lap, and then flew away. When my parents read it they were excited I had been offered schooling at a very reputable Private School."  
  
"It certainly is a very reputable school." Ben said as he opened up his bag of chocolates. "You want one?"  
  
Kitty took a chocolate and hungrily shoved it in her mouth. "Thanks."  
  
"So what if you're parents are muggles.you're a witch and you're going to Hogwarts. Where's the confusion?"  
  
"Muggles?"  
  
"Non-magic folk." Ben winked. "Like your parents."  
  
"Oh." Kitty said. She paused and ate another chocolate. "Don't you see? When I read the letter I saw that I was being offered a chance to enroll at Hogwarts School of Magic. But that's not what my parents read. They think I'm attending Hogwarts School for Gifted Youngsters. Every time I tried to explain to them what kind of school they were enrolling me in they laughed. I don't understand why they couldn't see what I saw."  
  
Ben had stopped eating as he clued in. "You mean your parents think you're attending some muggle private school?"  
  
Kitty bit her lip and nodded. "I don't think I'm supposed to be here. I don't know anything about Magic. I kept telling them it was a joke and that an Owl dropped it off but they didn't believe me."  
  
Ben didn't know what to say. Kitty's tale was strange indeed.  
  
"Did you get all the items required for our classes?" Ben finally asked.  
  
"One week before I was supposed to leave for school, a package showed up at the door for me."  
  
"Where did it come from?"  
  
"I don't know. It didn't have a return address on it but my parents assumed it was from the school. In it there was a set of robes, a hat, a bunch of books, a small cauldron and a wand."  
  
"Surely your parents would have thought that a package containing all that was a bit strange didn't they? I mean for one attending a muggle school that is."  
  
"They thought it was all standard Private School attire. My Dad made me put on my robes and take my picture while my mom said how lovely I looked in a skirt."  
  
"Your robes are a skirt?"  
  
"No silly." Kitty huffed. "They saw a skirt and blouse but really it was my robes.and a witch's hat they thought was a cute little French beret! My books. they thought those were Math, English and Science textbooks. I read one of the textbooks before I left home, "Hogwarts, A School History. That's how I knew how to find the platform, about Quidditch and about the whole magic." she waved her hands in frustration." the whole magic thing."  
  
"That's really weird." Ben said.  
  
Kitty nodded almost on the verge of tears. "They thought I was lying when I told them what I saw in the package, what I read in the letter. This must be some kind of mistake. I know it."  
  
Ben wasn't sure of what to say so he offered her another chocolate. They'd be at Hogwarts soon. Maybe things would be explained once they arrived.  
  
CHAPTER THREE - "Underwater"  
  
  
  
For the rest of the trip Ben tried to cheer Kitty up by levitating his Owl treats and exploding a few more pillows. It seemed to improve her spirits quite a bit. As they neared their destination they watched the sun set slowly down behind the horizon.  
  
They followed an enormous man (one that made Ben's dad seem like a dwarf) off the train and towards some rowboats. Everyone piled into the boats. The oars magically started to row themselves across the black lake towards the looming castle that would be their home for the next ten months.  
  
"Wow." Ben mumbled in awe.  
  
Kitty turned to see that Ben was not referring to the immensity of the School but at something in the water.  
  
"What is it?" Kitty whispered as she leaned over to look into the dark water.  
  
"Something under there just winked at me."  
  
"Something? It was probably just a Mermaid or a Grindylow." Kitty explained. "Or maybe a giant squid"  
  
"G-g-giant squid?" Ben stuttered "How do you know that? Two weeks ago you didn't even know a magic school existed!"  
  
"Hogwarts, A School History.didn't you read it?" Kitty replied angrily. She peered over the edge of the boat intent on getting a look for herself. "I thought it was just a silly story. I thought this whole place was just some kind of made up fairytale land and the book was a story. I used to see this place in my dreams. I can't believe this is really happening" She stopped talking when she saw something underwater moving fast past them. "I saw it." She whispered again pointing at the water. "There." By this time the others in the boat had started to look over the edge attempting to catch a glimpse of whatever was watching them from under the water.  
  
The boat lurched to one side and several of the students cried out. The boat lurched again as if it was being struck repeatedly by something beneath the boat. Something big. Other boats were likewise being bumped around in the water and a few of the children cried out.  
  
Finally only once it seemed that all the younger students were in sheer terror of being capsized did the large man finally lean over the boat's edge. "ENID!" he called out. "Enough already.you've had your fun and I'm getting bloody wet here."  
  
The boat continued it's rowing towards the School untouched after that.  
  
"The squid's name is Enid?" Ben whispered to Kitty.  
  
"One of them." Kitty replied.  
  
CHAPTER FOUR - "The Sorting"  
  
The first year students were led up the wide stone steps towards a great huge set of doors. A tall older-looking woman stood at the top eyeballing the students as she held out her hand stopping them from entering the doors.  
  
"It's the sorting ritual next." Ben whispered to Kitty. "My dad told me about that."  
  
Despite her age the woman spoke very loudly and clearly as her voice carried out down the stairs. "I am Professor McGonagall. On the other side of these doors is the Great Hall. You will be called upon one by one and sorted into one of the four houses at Hogwarts.Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or Slytherin"  
  
Ben opened his mouth to whisper something to Kitty when she delivered an elbow to his ribs stifling his comments before he had the chance to speak.  
  
"After the sorting you will each join the other students in your new houses and the feast will begin. Everything will be explained in time so please hold your questions until after the feast. Welcome to."  
  
Professor McGonagall was cut off abruptly when the doors to the Great Hall burst open. A woman, who looked much like a large bug, wearing oversized glasses and long green robes trimmed with yellowy-gold, ushered Professor McGonagall over to her.  
  
"Get the students into the Hall as fast as you can. The Sorting Hat is.well..sick.. and Headmaster Black thinks we'd best get the new students sorted as fast as possible so that the Hat can retire for the evening."  
  
"What's going on?" Ben said trying to overhear the two women whispering.  
  
"The Hat is sick." Kitty said.  
  
"Hat?" Ben said. "Oh...you mean the Sorting Hat. How can a Hat get sick?"  
  
Kitty shrugged. It was the silliest thing she had ever heard and yet she doubted that it would remain that way. Needless to say the first year students were quickly ushered into the Great Hall, past the other students sitting along the four tables representing each house. The woman in the green robes took up her seat at the head table as did Professor McGonagall.  
  
Headmaster Black was a tall very stiff looking man with a chiseled face. He looked both stern and yet there was a compassion in his eyes that betrayed his chiseled looks. Kitty had read that he was the successor after Headmaster Malfoy, who only headmastered successfully for one year before being removed by the council. Sirius Black, once a wanted criminal, had his name cleared and took up the position that Hogwarts most infamous Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, once had held. It was considered quite an honor in the Magical community and quite a responsibility. He stood up to address the students.  
  
"First year students, welcome to Hogwarts. When the Sorting Hat calls your name please step forth."  
  
The Sorting Hat cleared its throat and called on the first student. "Tia Whyte"  
  
A young girl with long wavy brown hair cautiously approached the Sorting Hat. The Hat sneezed a few times as it was lifted up onto her head. Tia sat perfectly still as the large Hat shifted slowly back and forth on her head.  
  
"Oh....clear.this is clear indeed." The Sorting Hat said. "Ravenclaw."  
  
Professor McGonagall lifted the Hat off her head and she ran over to the Ravenclaw table to be greeted by the cheering of her new housemates. The Hat sneezed again. Professor McGonagall looked over at Headmaster Black.  
  
The other students began to go up one by one to get sorted. The Sorting Hat's sneezing gave way to fits of coughing. One student had to sit for several minutes enduring a bout of coughing until finally the Hat announced his house. With each sorting the Hat's condition worsened. Thankfully the Hat had no nose to run.  
  
Looking at the head table, Kitty caught one of the Professors glaring at her. He was dressed in black robes that seemed to eat up all the light around it. His black hair would have matched except it was peppered with streaks of gray. She quickly looked away as her head began to ache.  
  
"Kitty?" Ben elbowed her in the ribs. "It called you.get up there."  
  
Kitty shivered, looked over at the Professor once more and then approached the Sorting Hat.  
  
Apprehensively she sat down on the stool, as the other students before her had done. She caught Ben's eye. He was smiling at her as if nothing was wrong. But something was wrong, very wrong. Was Kitty the only one who knew that?  
  
The Sorting Hat was placed on her head. Immediately it let out a yell which was curtailed by a fit of coughing and sneezing.  
  
Headmaster Black and Professor McGonagall exchanged worried glances once again. There were not many students left to be sorted but the Hat was getting worse and worse and they feared it might not make it through.  
  
"Perhaps we can postpone the rest of the Sorting?" McGonagall whispered to Headmaster Black.  
  
The Professor dressed in black leaned over and urged against McGonagall's request. "It is almost over. Let it continue." Headmaster Black reluctantly nodded.  
  
"Indeed." The Sorting Hat said in between coughs. "Strange indeed."  
  
Kitty could feel the Professor was still starring at her but she did not look over his way.  
  
The Hat squished itself down on her head as if to suck her very thoughts out from her mind. "I see it now.G.g.g.grack!" It started coughing again. Letting out one more sneeze it finally stuttered out "S...s..s Slytherin!"  
  
A roar from the Slytherin table went up as the Hat was removed from Kitty's head. She stepped down and walked over to the table where the Slytherin students sat. The Professor was now sneering as if he were attempting to smile but somehow couldn't. Instead of sitting down she turned to face the head table. "It's wrong." She said aloud to Headmaster Black.  
  
The entire room quieted. Who was this first year student that dare address the Headmaster of the School?  
  
"Miss Kitty." Professor McGonagall stood up. "Please take your seat among your housemates."  
  
Kitty wanted to scream out that the Hat was wrong. She didn't know how or why the Sorting Hat was wrong, but it was. She clenched her fists and sat down. After enduring the laughter from her parents at the silly notions of her attending a School of Magic she did not feel like procuring anymore ridicule  
  
Next up was a tiny girl named Marla Smallins. Some might have thought that she had some elf blood in her which would account for her short stature. The Sorting Hat was simply enormous as it perched on her head. There was no coughing this time and the Sorting Hat quickly made its choice. "Gryffindor" The Gryffindor's started cheering.  
  
Ben's was last. He dashed up to the stool and the Sorting Hat was placed on his head. Kitty's head started pounding. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up as she watched the Hat try to speak in between sneezes. The strange bug-like woman in green robes was looking directly at Ben, and she was grinning ear to ear.  
  
"Huff.Huff....HUFFLEPUFF!" The Sorting Hat yelled out. It then collapsed in a heap right on Ben's head. He was frantically trying to push the Sorting Hat off when Professor McGonagall rushed over and gently picked it up. It was limp in her arms. Ben jumped up, and as fast as he had dashed up to be sorted, he now ran away from the sickly Hat to join his new house.  
  
Headmaster Black stood up concerned for the unconscious Hat. A quick exchange of whispers between him and McGonagall and he sat down again.  
  
"Has that ever happened before?" Tia Whyte whispered to a blond haired second year Ravenclaw named Ro Gagetown.  
  
Ro shrugged. "Not that I've ever heard. I heard Professor Trelawney say the Sorting Hat was sick."  
  
Professor McGonagall had left the room temporarily with the Hat. The room was still silent.  
  
Headmaster Black stood up once again. His expression of concern was gone as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. "And now, with all our new Hogwarts students sorted into their houses, let the feast begin." He waved his wand and food of all kinds overflowed across the tables.  
  
Kitty looked at her plate. She didn't really feel like eating. A bread roll hit her in the forehead and bounced off onto her lap. Looking up she saw Ben sitting opposite her at the Hufflepuff table, smiling while hungrily gnawing on a chicken leg. She didn't feel like smiling but did so anyways.  
  
The man in the black robes, she soon found out, was Professor Snape, He was Slytherin's Headmaster. Somehow it didn't surprise her. She shivered every time she heard his voice as he lectured to the new students about the grandeur of Salazar Slytherin, the founder of their house.  
  
After several hours of stuffing hungry bellies and cheerful conversation between students, the great Welcoming Feast came to an end.  
  
The first year students were told to gather behind their House Prefects who would lead them to their dormitories. Kitty's Prefect was a blond-haired boy named Magnus Malfoy. He must have been a son or nephew of the last Headmaster of the school.Headmaster Lucious Malfoy. What a burden that was to bear.  
  
"Follow me and keep up." Magnus said. "I don't want any of you to get lost or killed on your first day at the school."  
  
Several of the first year Slytherin's laughed at what they thought was a joke. Magnus did not. He brushed a strand of blond hair out of his face, turned about face and walked out of the Great Hall. The first years Kitty included, scrambled after him.  
  
  
  
Chapter 5 - "Practice Makes Perfect"  
  
Ben landed with a bounce on his new bed. He was not tired in the least. Looking out his window he could see the Quidditch pitch. His thoughts drifted away as he imagined flying across the pitch, bobbing and weaving through the other players, chasing after the Golden Snitch.  
  
Ben had only played in a real game a few times back in his home town when the other Magic kids were able to get together for a match. Despite not being able to play in an organized game very often, his father had been a persistent trainer and he and Ben spent long hours honing Ben's skills and strategy. After all, when you were training to be a seeker the Golden Snitch was the only thing that really mattered anyways. What the other players were doing on the field was secondary.  
  
He could hear the crowds roaring as he grabbed the Snitch from the air. The crowds cheered..the sound scared him. He had never played in front of a crowd before.. just his dad out on the back field. He hadn't thought about it in that way. Hundreds of eyes watching his every move.  
  
He backed away from the window.  
  
"Morrison?" A voice said from behind.  
  
Ben turned to see another student standing in the doorway looking about the room. He was a tall boy who must have been several years older than Ben.  
  
"I'm Morrison." Ben said.  
  
The student walked over to his bed. "I'm Deaner." He handed Ben a small paper. "Summons to the Quidditch pitch at seven am tomorrow morning."  
  
"I just got here!" Ben protested. "What about classes?"  
  
"Quidditch practice won't interfere with your classes. We have an hour training in the morning three times a week and an hour after classes two nights a week. Saturday we train at 10am for three hours and Sunday we get off, only if we win our game. I must add that we have Sunday practices more often than not. I hope you're as good as your reputation says you are because I bloody well want some time off."  
  
Ben shivered for some reason. A cold draft passed though the room. No it was not a draft but a ghost. He stopped next to Ben and Deaner. "You guys hear the one about the three talking horses.well this talking greyhound comes up and..."  
  
"Go away!" Deaner said angrily interrupting the ghost.  
  
The ghost, indignant, put his hands in the air and melted off through the wall.  
  
"Who was that?" Ben asked.  
  
"Sir Blakey." Deaner answered. "Nevermind him.he's always about telling jokes to whoever'll listen."  
  
"I like jokes." Ben said wishing that Sir Blakey had been allowed to stay and tell his joke.  
  
"You should get your mind focused on training and stay away from anything that might be a distraction."  
  
Ben had been at the school less than a day and already he had met someone who he didn't like. Deaner was very rude and short tempered. Hufflepuff hadn't won the cup in a long time so it whatever training they had obviously wasn't working. "And just who are you to tell me what I should think about?" Ben replied with a sneer. He knew he shouldn't back talk to an older student but if he didn't stick up for himself now then he might get walked over the rest of the school year.  
  
"I'm the Hufflepuff Quidditch Captain." Deaner replied. He leaned in close enough for Ben to see the anger in his eyes. "This is my last year to get scouted for the IPQ, so don't give me any trouble." He stood back up straight. "Right then, see you at seven."  
  
Chapter 6 - "Special Conditions"  
  
Kitty didn't sleep well that first night at all. She tossed and turned in her bed and would have gotten up but she was afraid that if she was caught out of bed she'd get in trouble. She thought about everything she had read in the textbook about Hogwarts, the men and women who had been Professors at Hogwarts, the proud history of the Quidditch competition, and the evolution of the magical community. 'Muggles,' as Ben had referred to them were non-magic folk. Her parents, her friends, her siblings..all muggles. Why did she have to be different? It was bad enough that among muggles she was already weird enough. How many doctors had she seen about her insomnia, and none of them had any answer for what was wrong. It had been two days now since she had last slept.  
  
Kitty guessed why she couldn't sleep that night or the last. She didn't belong there. She was not a witch and yet no one believed that she was not. Perhaps they were all too embarrassed to admit they might have made a mistake.  
  
She curled up in her bed. The full moon shone though her window onto the floor next to the bed. From the corner of her eye she saw something move out from underneath the bed. She jumped up and peered over the edge. A dark shadow slipped past the moonlight and into the darkness.  
  
She held her breath.  
  
Kaninchen Brewite at your service Miss.  
  
Kitty starred at the black shadow as it crept out into the light. Kitty saw it was a long lean black and grey striped cat. It had large eyes that seemed to change from yellow to orange to green. Had the creature just spoken to her?  
  
Miss.? Are you okay?  
  
Kitty was staring wide eyed at the cat that sat in the moonbeam on the floor next to her bed. "Where did you come from little kitty cat?" Kitty whispered.  
  
The cat's mouth did not move but Kitty clearly heard the creature speak, as if it was in a dream.  
  
I have sought you out at great lengths miss. I have come to offer you my aid.  
  
"You're here to help me? Help me get out of here?" Kitty hoped.  
  
Why would you want out? You've only just gotten in?  
  
"Because I'm not supposed to be here." Kitty replied. Her voice caused several of her roommates to shift in their beds. Kitty quieted.  
  
Indeed. If that were true then you would not be talking to me right now.  
  
"I'm not talking to you!" Kitty was getting upset. "This is not really happening. It must be another of my dreams."  
  
Your dreams eh? I assure you, it is not.  
  
"Then what do you want from me?"  
  
To help you.  
  
"Why should I listen to a talking cat that isn't making any sense?"  
  
You know why.  
  
Kitty pulled the blanket up over her head. "Go away." Kitty didn't even feel the cat jump onto the bed. It just appeared at her side where it curled up in a ball next to her. She turned her back to it. No one ever listened to her. Not even the cats.  
  
Chapter 7 - "The Gauntlet"  
  
"Not bad." Deaner said as he watched Ben swoop through and around "The Gauntlet".  
  
The Gauntlet was a Quidditch player's nightmare. The aptly named obstacle course was configured of objects magically suspended in the air. A little something that Deaner had designed for testing their speed and agility on their broomsticks. As Ben finished the last lap it was clear to them just how good the new Hufflepuff seeker actually was at flying. The suspended objects moved about in the air changing the shape of the course as Ben dodged and weaved the last few blocks. Seventy six seconds, Deaner clocked him at. He had made it through the course only losing the path once. The other Hufflepuff players were in awe. None of them had made Deaner's course in that time except Deaner himself.  
  
As Ben touched down on the grass he heard cheers go up from the rest of the team. All except Deaner  
  
"Good show!" Ryan, one of the team's beaters shouted as he stepped up and slapped Ben on the back. "I can't say I've ever seen ANYone fly that fast through Deaner's Gauntlet."  
  
Deaner raised and eyebrow at the boy. "Be quiet Ryan. So what if he can fly? It takes a lot more than flying to catch the Golden Snitch."  
  
What is his problem? Ben thought. So what if Hufflepuff had not won the Quidditch cup in over twenty years, it was not Ben's fault. "I can fly AND catch the Snitch." He said defiantly to the Captain.  
  
Deaner opened up the Quidditch box that held the game balls and released the Snitch into the air. Its golden wings beat so quickly they were barely visible as it took off into the morning light. "Then go get it."  
  
Ben swung his leg over his broom and kicked off in hot pursuit. "Yes my captain." Ben muttered as he flew through the air in anger.  
  
Deaner bent down and undid the locks restraining the bludgers. Immediately they took off into the air after their target. The two Quidditch Beaters, Ryan and Kreimeh jumped astride their broomsticks intent on chasing after the rampant bludgers.  
  
"Stay here." Deaner barked.  
  
"But." Ryan protested. "The bludgers are going to go straight for him! Without us to keep them away Ben'll be..."  
  
".knocked off his broomstick." Deaner finished Ryan's sentence. "Exactly." He smiled and turned his attention upwards.  
  
The team remained on the ground as they watched Ben zig zag back and forth chasing after the elusive Snitch, oblivious to the fact that the bludgers were zeroing in on him. At the last second Ben caught sight of one of the bludgers and pulled out of its line of flight. It narrowly missed him as it zoomed past and arced wide coming back for a second attempt. He watched it speed towards him.  
  
Then Ben felt nothing as the second bludger stuck him from behind.  
  
When he opened his eyes he was vaguely aware that he was lying in the grass. It felt cold and still was wet with dew. Ryan and Guylaine, their only female player, were kneeling down next to him.  
  
"What happened?" Ben asked. He sat up and a bolt of pain shot through his head.  
  
"You got hit by a bludger." Ryan said.  
  
Deaner walked into view holding the Snitch. "I thought you said you could catch this?" he asked.  
  
"That's not fair!" Ben spat out angrily. "You set the bludgers after me! Its not wonder you guys haven't won a cup in so long. You can't come together as a team if you beat the crap out of each other first!" Already Ben knew he should have held his tongue.  
  
"What would you know about being part of a team? From what I hear you trained alone." Deaner's expression had changed from anger to rage. "Don't even pretend to talk about things you don't know about. We haven't won because.." His voice trailed off as he looked away biting back his words. He faced Ben again. His eyes had calmed down a bit and he spoke in an even tone. "THIS isn't about being fair. You're only on this team because I was told you had to be. But don't give in to your own hype. In a game you may not always have the benefit of our beaters to save you from the bludgers. I want to know if you can play the whole game as well as you can seek."  
  
Everyone was silent. It was all true. It made sense even if they didn't like it. He was training them to handle the worst. If they could learn that they could only become stronger.  
  
Ben didn't reply. He was angry and his head still hurt.  
  
"Hit the showers. Morrison, go see the nurse about that bump" Deaner said as he shoved the flittering Snitch back into the Quidditch case. "I have to go and talk to Professor Trelawney."  
  
Ryan helped Ben up to his feet and they headed back to the locker room.  
  
"How did Deaner get the Snitch back?" Ben asked.  
  
"You didn't know?" Ryan said, seemingly surprised at Ben's question.  
  
Ben shook his head.  
  
"Deaner has been the seeker for Hufflepuff for the last four years. You're his replacement."  
  
Chapter 8 - "Tricks and Lessons"  
  
"Kitty!"  
  
Kitty didn't hear her name being called as she walked quickly down the hallway. She had just sat through a grueling hour of her first Potions class. Their teacher talked for the entire time and they didn't even get to touch their cauldrons. Professor Scooter was obviously very knowledgeable about the subject of Magical Potions and yet he kept looking out the window, losing his train of thought and having to begin his point all over again.  
  
What was so fascinating outside the class? Rumors had it that Professor Scooter was somewhat smitten with the Charms teacher, Professor Mackenzie who was teaching her class outside in the school courtyard while the fall weather remained good.  
  
The distraction proved too much for Professor Scooter and he rambled on and on without actually making any sense. Once during the class, he had even tripped over a big black box and sent its contents spilling out onto the floor. It was filled with vials of different coloured liquids and powders. If it had not been for the fast reactions of the small girl in the front row, (a Gryffindor Kitty remembered from the sorting by the name Marla Smallins), who caught one of the vials before it could break, they would no doubt all have been infected by a cloud of Bane's Breath.  
  
"Kitty!"  
  
Kitty looked up this time towards the voice. "Hi Ben."  
  
"Where are you off too?" he asked.  
  
"Care of Magical Creatures."  
  
"Me too."  
  
"How was your class?"  
  
"I don't know." Ben replied. "I missed it."  
  
Kitty stopped walking and faced Ben. "You missed it?"  
  
Ben then recounted his tale at the Quidditch practice that morning. "I got this bump but the nurse said it'd be gone in a few days"  
  
"Sheesh." Kitty huffed. "They sure work fast around here.our first week and already you have practice."  
  
"Yeah. Almost every day." Ben shrugged. "Oh well, that's why I'm here I guess."  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Oh Kitty, you're not going to go on about how you're not supposed to be here are you? That something is wrong at the school; the professors are part of a conspiracy and all that, are you?"  
  
Kitty bit her lip and started walking again.  
  
"Oh come on." Ben chased after her. "Its just jitters."  
  
"It's not jitters." Kitty said. "And after class today I'm going to see if I can talk to Headmaster Black."  
  
"NO.you can't do that." Ben said.  
  
"Why not?"  
  
Ben fumbled for some reason why she couldn't go and talk to Headmaster Black..anything to keep her from getting in trouble. "Uh.because I want you to come and watch me practice tonight." He finally said.  
  
Kitty raised and eyebrow.  
  
"I mean, if you want to that is." Ben added in a hurry. Kitty said nothing and kept walking.  
  
They were half way across the school grounds when Kitty replied. "Okay."  
  
"Okay?" Ben asked.  
  
"Okay, I'll come and watch you practice."  
  
"Oh.oh yeah.very good then."  
  
They saw the other students slowly gathering around a small barn on the edge of the school's grounds. Rumour had it that their Care of Magical Creatures teacher was a werewolf.  
  
"Come on." Kitty said. "We're going to be late."  
  
They both dashed off to catch up to the others. Kitty and Ben were just arriving when the door of the barn opened and a man holding onto a rope that led back into the barn.  
  
"Hello students." The Professor said. "I am Professor Lupin. I will be teaching Care of Magical Creatures for the year."  
  
The students were hardly paying any attention to Professor Lupin because they were all focused on the rope. Whatever it was attached to back in the darkness of the barn was breathing rather heavily and occasionally tugging at the rope.  
  
"This year I hope to cover many things about the care for and needs of a wide variety of creatures. One never knows when one might find themselves with the responsibility of looking after.."  
  
Professor Lupin was all of a sudden ripped off his feet and dragged backwards into the barn still clutching the rope.  
  
The students all started to mutter nervously. "What do we do? Somebody go get one of the other professors."  
  
"We have to do something now!" Ben said. "It could be eating him.. or something."  
  
Kitty pushed her way through the other children with Ben right behind her. Whatever had pulled Lupin back into the barn had to have been awfully big and strong. Professor Lupin was not a small man.  
  
"Professor Lupin?" Kitty called out. "Do you need some help?" Her voice echoed inside the barn as she stepped in through the doors. It seemed to be far larger on the inside than it appeared on the outside.  
  
"PROFESSOR?" Ben called in.  
  
They heard a snarling and then an enormous man came into view and started laughing. It was the same man that had led them from the Hogwarts Express to the boats that ferried them across the Lake. He was holding one end of the rope in his hands.  
  
"Scared the winkies outta ya, did I?" the Giant asked.  
  
Kitty and Ben were speechless as Professor Lupin walked out of the shadows and stood next to the Giant.  
  
"Only two of you eh?" he said smiling. "Ah well that's two more than I had in my class this morning. "The first and most important thing about Caring for Magical Creatures is that you can't be afraid of the unknown."  
  
Kitty smiled.  
  
"You understand don't you miss?" Lupin said as he handed his end of the rope back to the Giant. Kitty nodded.  
  
"Are we looking after that?" Ben asked still transfixed on the Giant.  
  
The Giant started laughing. "Good Gracious no." the large man bellowed. "I'm not a magical creature.I'm just ole Hagrid, the school groundskeeper." He replied as he winked at Ben.  
  
"Hagrid was just helping me run an experiment to see if there was any of you brave enough to not let your fears get the best of you. " Lupin explained.  
  
"I was scared." Ben admitted.  
  
"Yes, but you came in anyways." Lupin said. He smiled. "That took a lot of courage young man. Many people, even the best of witches and wizards, are lousy caretakers of magical creatures only because they lack the courage to handle them." He leaned down close to them both. "Besides, Hagrid really is the tamest of all the creatures around."  
  
"I 'eard that professor." Hagrid said. "I ain't anymore a creature than you are."  
  
Professor Lupin laughed. "Indeed you are right my good man."  
  
Professor Lupin led Ben and Kitty back out into the light of the yard where the other children still stood in shock.  
  
"It's alright." Professor Lupin called out. "This fine Witch and Wizard helped me subdue the beast." Kitty and Ben blushed. "Retractum Portalis." Lupin said as he whipped the air with his wand. The huge barn doors swung shut and several of the students let out a sigh of relief.  
  
"The first rule in caring for magical creatures is that one cannot properly provide care for a creature if one is afraid of that creature."  
  
Kitty smiled. She knew this was one class she was going to like.  
  
Chapter 9 "Just Not in Slytherin"  
  
By the end of the day Kitty had completely forgotten about talking to Headmaster Black. After Care of Magical Creatures she had Transfiguration. It was an exciting class and although it somewhat scared her that she would have to attempt the various spells, it also thrilled her with the knowledge that such magical feats were possible. Why you could change a bottle of water into chocolate milk, a clock into a bird, a human into a cat.  
  
Ben caught up to her in the hallway. The smile on her face was a good indication that she was, for the first time since he had met up with her back on the platform, happy. "I just had an awful class." Ben complained. "The History of Magic."  
  
Kitty smiled. "When do you have transfiguration? It's a great class. Professor McGonagall is quite talented. She makes it all look so easy."  
  
"Um.I have it tomorrow." Ben replied fumbling through his timetable. "You still going to come to the pitch tonight?"  
  
"Yeah.of course." Kitty really wanted to go and start into the books she had received in class for this years studies but she had already told Ben she'd come and watch.  
  
"Hey Kitty cat!" A voice said from behind them. They both turned around to see Magnus Malfoy. "The Slytherins are getting together tonight in the common room for an initiation of the first years. Didn't you hear?"  
  
"I heard about it but I can't go." Kitty replied.  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Because I'm going to watch a Quidditch practice."  
  
"Hey it's okay if you got a house thing to do instead." Ben said trying to smooth over the ever developing waves of conflict. "I understand, no worries."  
  
"Quidditch?.Hufflepuffs have the pitch tonight." Magnus said "Your house comes first."  
  
Kitty wanted to shout. "This is not my house!" But a quick glare from Ben and she held her tongue.  
  
"Come on." Magnus said, his voice softened. "We only want you to be a part of the house, make you feel welcome. I know its hard being away at school but you have to make friends."  
  
"I have friends already." Kitty said as she looked at Ben. "Just not in Slytherin." She flashed a look back at Magnus.  
  
"Something the matter here?" a hollow voice said as Professor Snape strode out from one of the classrooms.  
  
"No Professor Snape." Magnus said. "I was just reminding Kitty here of the house get together that we are throwing for all the new students."  
  
"Ah good." Snape said. "It is important to get to know your housemates." He somewhat sneered at Kitty. "They will be the ones you will have to turn too when you need help."  
  
Need help? Kitty thought. Why would I need help from them? She could feel a tickle at the back of her mind which quickly developed into an ache. "Alright Magnus.I'll come." It wasn't so much the intimidation of Professor Snape that made her change her mind but the desire to find proof that there was something wrong with her house. Maybe the people in the House, maybe the House itself, maybe even the school. One thing seemed for certain, every time Professor Snape was near by her head ached.  
  
"Come on then." Magnus said. "It'll be fun."  
  
She winked at Ben. "See?..It'll be fun." She mimicked sarcastically.  
  
"I'll catch up with you tomorrow then."  
  
"Okay.good luck at practice and watch out for bludgers."  
  
Ben cracked a faint grimace in remembrance and walked away rubbing his head.  
  
Chapter 10 "Initiation"  
  
The 'Slytherin Initiation' as it was called was really just a series of silly magical tests designed for the first year. Each newcomer was paired up with an older student and given a list of tasks to complete before the other teams. Not knowing any magic yet the first years were not of much help but they were given a chance to see what they would be learning in future years to come. Many of the spells were designed so that one could invoke the spell but only a second wizard or witch could amplify it.  
  
The highlight of the night was when a forth year accidentally mixed up her reconstruction spell with a deconstruction spell and the broken vase that was supposed to be rebuilt, instead exploded in a great white cloud across the common room covering everyone with a fine china dust.  
  
It took several moments for the older students to invoke the proper housecleaning spells before the contest could continue.  
  
Lucky for Kitty, she was teamed up with Magnus himself. She rolled her eyes.  
  
"Come on Kat." He said. "Why do you always have to be sticking out the claws?"  
  
Kitty glared at him.  
  
"See! You're doing it right now." Magnus said. "What IS the problem? So the Hat didn't put you in the House you had hoped for..so what? We're all witches and wizards in training regardless of which house we're in. I just don't see what the big deal is?"  
  
Kitty didn't reply. What was she supposed to say to him? That she suspected that there was a conspiracy afoot at Hogwarts, that she wasn't a witch, that there had been some mistake or else someone had tricked everyone into letting her in the school? Should she tell him what she could do, what she knew.  
  
Magnus threw his hands up in frustration, forgetting that he held his wand firmly in his fingers. The fire in the fireplace roared upwards and several students jumped back, their robes singed.  
  
"Sorry about that." Magnus sighed. "Are you going to help me with this task or not." He asked Kitty.  
  
She looked up at the tall blond Prefect. She had read all about the fall of his rather infamous family back when Lord Voldemort was trying to regain his power. His father was a deatheater and his older brother Draco soon followed in those very footsteps. When Voldemort was beaten the Malfoy family name was rather downcast amongst the Magical community. It must have been hard going to the very school your own father had tried to destroy. She could feel that inside, Magnus Malfoy was not like his family at all, a bit of an outcast himself. Just like Kitty and yet not like her at all.  
  
She nodded and pulled her wand out.  
  
"Ok then." He smiled. "Now this particular spell has to be done in unison for it too work. You'll have to repeat the words exactly the same way and in time with me. ..okay?"  
  
"Okay" Kitty said as Magnus recited the words to her for practice.  
  
The spell didn't work even though Kitty had recited the words exactly as told. "Sorry." She said "I'm just not very good at this."  
  
"Don't worry about it.it's all in fun. "Magnus reassured her.  
  
"I'm afraid." Kitty started to say.  
  
"Afraid of what?"  
  
"Um.you see.I'm afraid that I won't be able to do ANY magic." She confided in him. "EVER."  
  
"Oh you will. It just takes practice. That's all." He waved his wand and a few sparks flew out in an arc and made the fire jump again. "That's what the school is for."  
  
Kitty forced herself to smile back. She was not a witch, and muggles couldn't do magic. "I'll keep trying."  
  
At then end of the night, all the Slytherins had participated in one way or another in the competition. It seemed like the evening was a success and everyone had had fun. Even Kitty, who had come in last place, not able to amplify any of Magnus's spells, found herself enjoying the competition.  
  
She was thinking that maybe she should just keep quiet about her thoughts and just make the best of it, when Professor Snape entered the Common Room. Her head began to ache at once.  
  
"Good evening students" he said. His icy stare fell upon Kitty and even though she looked away she knew he continued to look at her. "Please Magnus.a word with you."  
  
"Yes sir." Magnus clapped Kitty on the back "Good effort.see you later Kat" He then followed Snape out of the room.  
  
The house retired to bed shortly afterwards. It had been a long day for everyone.  
  
  
  
Chapter 11 - "Strange Times"  
  
Kitty awoke with a start in the middle of the night. She had managed to fall asleep relatively quick considering her recent bouts of insomnia and she feared that she would not get back to sleep.  
  
It was raining outside and the patter of raindrops on the roof above would have been soothing to listen too if not for the fact that her head was pounding again. Instead, each drop seemed to echo in her mind. She looked out the window and saw the Quidditch pitch. Lightning flashed and she saw two teams playing.  
  
In the middle of the night? During a storm?  
  
She rubbed her eyes and tried to make out who it was. In another flash she saw the colors of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw teams.  
  
But why were they playing at night?  
  
A third flash and she saw the Hufflepuff seeker plummeting towards the ground. Jumping out of bed she flung the window open. She shut her eyes as the wind tore into the room and sent her sprawling backwards.  
  
"Kitty?" she heard a voice say.  
  
Kitty opened her eyes. It was Ben.  
  
"Hi there." He said. "You're finally awake."  
  
"Awake?" Kitty looked down and she was lying in a bed that was not her own. Looking over she saw that she was in the hospital wing of the school. "What.. what's going on?"  
  
"They said you bumped your head up in your dorm room. One of your housemates found you lying on the floor next to your bed. Did you fall out of bed?"  
  
"It was the storm. I was watching the Quidditch game and when I opened the window the wind knocked me off my feet." Kitty said. Her head didn't hurt at all and she was pretty sure she hadn't hit it when she fell. She could see Ben looking perplexed. "You were there. I saw you fall. At least I think it was you."  
  
"It wasn't me." Ben shrugged. "I was sleeping all last night."  
  
"Maybe they were practicing without you. You didn't hear the storm?"  
  
Ben glanced over at the window. The sunlight shone brightly through the long windows illuminating the room. "I don't think it even rained last night. The pitch was dry this morning when I went for practice. You must have been having a nightmare."  
  
"No.I was awake!"  
  
Ben bit his lip unsure of what to say. Kitty knew he was beginning to think like all the others. That she was crazy. Her own parents had often commented on her strangeness and had asked her to try and act more 'normal'.  
  
"You don't believe me?"  
  
"Sure I do.right after potions I'm gonna go ask Deaner if they had a practice without me."  
  
"Oh crap!" Kitty said suddenly. "What time is it?"  
  
"I just finished Quid practice and I'm off to period one."  
  
"I'm late for Defense of the Dark Arts." Kitty swung her legs out over the side of the bed. She was still in her bed clothes. "I have to get back to the dorm, change, grab my books.I don't even know where the classroom is.oh..I'm so late."  
  
"Don't worry about it." Ben said. "You haven't been cleared to go back to class anyways." He nodded over towards an office at the back of the hospital room. Madame Pomfrey is back there. You have to get her permission to leave or else the room won't let you. I know...trust me I know" Ben had seen the school nurse after his encounter with the bludger and when she had popped off to the pharmacy room to get him some Mercyweed for his bump he had tried to sneak off. Every time he opened the door leading out from the hospital wing it led right back into the same room again. Sometimes magic really didn't make much sense.  
  
"But..I have class." Kitty protested. "I feel fine!" she yelled out hoping Madam Pomfrey would hear her.  
  
Ben shrugged. "I gotta go. I think we have Charms together this afternoon. I'll see you then.. IF they let you out." He added with a laugh and walked out of the room.  
  
Kitty huffed and then kicked the bedpost.  
  
Chapter 12 - "Premonitions"  
  
Later that afternoon Kitty caught up with Ben at Charms. Professor Mackenzie was a stunningly tall woman with long red hair. It was no wonder Professor Scooter was so transfixed on her. She might even have sported some Veela blood in her. Most of the boys in the class seemed somewhat mesmerized by her, unable to look away. To most her lessons were as enthralling as she was.  
  
As usual, Kitty seemed unable to get her wand to work. Why did it not seem to bother anyone that she was unable to work any spells? It certainly bothered her an awful lot.  
  
"It's okay." Professor Mackenzie comforted. "Not everyone can be Harry Potter. You'll get the hang of it soon."  
  
Kitty wanted to snap her stupid wand in two. Instead she screamed out the words "Perfumus Perfectum"  
  
Nothing happened. Everyone else in the class had already managed the charm and smelled like a spring garden full of flowers. Kitty just smelled like Kitty.  
  
She was thankful when the class finally ended. Kitty and Ben quickly headed out to Divination.  
  
"Professor MacKenzie is quite amazing isn't she?" Ben said. "I mean, the way she works those spells and all.I wish all our professors could be like that."  
  
"Don't you mean.all our 'classes' could be like that?" It was obvious Ben was still caught in the ambiance of Professors Mackenzie's beauty.  
  
"Yeah." Ben corrected. "Our classes.right." His voice trailing off.  
  
They walked the rest of the way in silence.  
  
At the end of a corridor, Magnus came suddenly around the corner seemingly oblivious to their presence. In fact he would have walked right into them if Ben had not shouted.  
  
"Watch where yer going!"  
  
"Oh.sorry." He muttered somewhat distant.  
  
Ben gave him a sneer.  
  
Kitty opened her mouth to speak but Magnus had already started to walk away.  
  
"That's strange." Kitty mumbled.  
  
"What is?"  
  
"Nothing. Nevermind."  
  
"No...you can tell me. I don't think you're nuts."  
  
Kitty snapped a look at Ben.  
  
"Did I say that out loud?" He asked as if caught saying something he hadn't intended on.  
  
Kitty nodded.  
  
"I didn't mean you were nuts. Whatever the others think I don't care. I know you're not crazy. I mean, IF the others did think you were nuts, not saying that they do but, well they'd be wrong, and I know that, so it's okay...so you can still tell me anything.. Really you can!"  
  
Kitty laughed at Ben's attempted recovery. "What I know is that we're going to be late and we'd better get going." She was still trying to hold back the laughter.  
  
"Are you going to come to watch my practice tonight? We have a game this Thursday, against Ravenclaw."  
  
Kitty stopped smiling. "Against Ravenclaw?"  
  
"Yeah. They're a tough team but I'm just glad we're not facing Gryffindor right off the start of the season. They're last year's champions."  
  
"Yeah.I'll come for sure this time."  
  
"Great. That's great." There was an awkward pause. "Race ya!" Ben laughed and took off running up the stairs. Kitty took up the challenge.  
  
They dashed up staircase after staircase until they were both out of breath.  
  
Up in the top of the one of the school's towers Professor Trelawney was setting up the classroom for an introduction to Divination. Kitty was happy with the lesson plan because there seemed to be very little actual magic involved. Well there were no spells to cast at least. Trelawney began by talking mostly about interpreting dreams and premonitions. Kitty thought back to the nightmare she had the previous night. From there she outlined how they would deal with different methods and means of seeing the future. Many of the students were skeptical but Professor Trelawney continued her lesson anyways. Kitty guessed that she must have been used to the students disbeliefs and such about the art of Divination.  
  
After the class ended and each student had their copy of that years readings Kitty approached her. "Professor Trelawney?" Most of the class had left the room already.  
  
"Yes Kitty."  
  
"I have a question. Do you think one can learn to control one's dreams?"  
  
Professor Trelawney smiled. Her wide lips parted and Kitty could see her long white teeth. Her big rimmed glasses made her look as if she was a scientist studying Kitty with intentions of dissecting her rather than teaching her.  
  
"Maybe Snape was right about you." she said.  
  
Kitty shivered at the mention of Snape's name. "Snape?"  
  
Trelawney had a look on her face as if she had said something aloud that she had not intended. "Dreams are not for us to control, only for us to interpret."  
  
Snape was right about what? What does he know? Kitty thought.  
  
"If you want to learn more I will be available for extra help on Tuesday's after class." She added. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go."  
  
They watched as Professor Trelawney descended down the spiral stairs leaving them alone in the classroom.  
  
"You believe all that?" Ben said as he burst out into laughter. "Predicting the future..reading fortunes." He stopped laughing the instant he saw Kitty's face. "Oh I see."  
  
Chapter 13 - "Uniqueness"  
  
By the time Kitty had made it out of her fourth class she was late for Ben's practice. The Hufflepuff team had already changed and was flying formations drills on the pitch. She could hear Deaner barking out commands at the team. It was nice to be outside in the glow of the evening sun. Out here she did not have to think about magic. She could just sit calmly and watch the grace of the Quidditch players as they flew about the sky. It looked like so much fun that Kitty considered asking Ben if he could show her a bit of flying sometime. She doubted that without magic she'd even be able to get the blasted broomstick off the ground but still...the thrill of flying.  
  
As she turned her eyes away from the sky for a minute she spied two figures on the other side of the pitch watching the practice. The shadowy blackness of the one figure's robes could only have been Snape. Kitty could see that the other had on large glasses that kept reflecting the sunlight as she moved her head. No doubt it was Professor Trelawney. She was talking to Snape.  
  
So what? They are probably discussing teaching plans or some such school business. Kitty's inner voice reasoned.  
  
You know they are not just talking about the school.  
  
Kitty jumped when she heard the voice. It was Kaninchen Brewite.  
  
You can call me Kanin for short if you'd like.  
  
The lean dark cat came out from behind the stands. In the daylight it was easier to see that it was merely a housecat and not a shadowy phantom that had visited her bedside the last week or so.  
  
"What do you want from me?" Kitty asked.  
  
The cat did not open its mouth and yet Kitty could clearly hear its response.  
  
You need my help. There is something that you do not know about yourself.  
  
Kitty huffed. "I know I'm a freak!" she said. "And to be a freak in an entire school of magical freaks is quite an undertaking. So do you mind?" She grabbed a text book and opened it up turning her back on the troublesome cat.  
  
Kanin walked around and sat down in front of her, his eyes transfixed on hers.  
  
You will not be a witch...  
  
"I know that you stupid cat." Kitty interrupted. "That's what I've been saying all the time. No one is listening to me."  
  
Those two, he nodded towards the two Professors, have other agendas.  
  
Kitty snapped her book shut in anger. "What does he want with me?" Kitty asked.  
  
Your uniqueness. Just as she wants his skill.  
  
Kanin pointed his tail up at the sky towards one of the Hufflepuff players, towards Ben.  
  
"Ben?" Kitty paused. "You mean 'she,' as in Professor Trelawney, wants something from Ben?"  
  
Kanin nodded. Perhaps what she wants in him, he wants in you. I am not completely sure they even know themselves.  
  
"Enough riddles you stupid cat!" Kitty shouted. Suddenly she could feel Snape looking over at her as was Professor Trelawney.  
  
"Oh crap." She muttered. Kanin had vanished.  
  
She collected her books quickly and left the pitch before either of the Professors would get a chance to cross the pitch. There was indeed a lot to think about. "Silly cat, putting thoughts into my mind. Making me even more paranoid than I already am. I shouldn't be listening to him." She muttered to herself as she walked quickly back up to the School.  
  
Later that night Ben caught up with her after dinner. "You left practice early?"  
  
"Yeah.sorry.you were flying really well. I just had to go."  
  
"Snape creeped you out eh?"  
  
Kitty was taken aback. "How'd you know?"  
  
"Oh he comes and watches all of our evening practices. He and Professor Trelawney. Maybe they have some kind of thing going on." He raised his eyebrows a few times and then winked.  
  
"Yeah.some kind of thing." Kitty replied. She looked up at Ben. "Do you ever wonder why you would be put on a team that already has a seeker?"  
  
"Cuz Deaner sucks." Ben shrugged with a joking smile. In truth Deaner was one of the best flyers Ben had ever seen, "I'm just playing for the house that I was sorted into. It's only for a year anyways, then I get to move onto the school team if I can prove myself."  
  
"But for the one year you HAVE to play on a House team and you are sorted onto the worst team in the school." Kitty replied. "Its like they expect your presence alone to bring the team to victory. At least I'm sure that's what professor Trelawney thinks."  
  
Ben looked perplexed. "What exactly are you getting at?"  
  
Kitty was about to tell Ben everything she suspected about Snape and Trelawney when Magnus showed up.  
  
"Kat. Professor Snape wants to see you."  
  
Kitty's head broke out into a dull ache. "Right now? What about?"  
  
Magnus nodded. "It's not a request." He snapped his hand out like snake and clamped down on Kitty's arm. Kitty stifled a cry as his fingers pressed into her skin. "You can ask him yourself when we get there." He started to pull her down the hallways towards the staircase.  
  
"Let go of her!" Ben called out. He ran up after the Prefect. "If she doesn't want to go with you she doesn't have to." he insisted, blocking them from proceeding up the staircase.  
  
Magnus's eyes flashed with anger. "Stay out of this Hufflepuff."  
  
Kitty cried out as a jolt of pain shot through her head.  
  
Ben swung a fist at Magnus and although he was quite a bit taller than Ben he managed to connect with Magnus's jaw. Magnus' head rocked back for a moment but he did not release his grip on Kitty's arm. Instead he grabbed Ben by the front of his robes and hauled him one handed past them and threw him out of the way sprawling backwards into the wall. Magnus pulled Kitty onto the stairs as it swung out across the hallway changing position. Magnus dragged her up the steps and soon they stood at a doorway leading to another area of the school while Ben laid stranded back on the landing of the previous stairway configuration.  
  
"What do you get when you cross a snake with a psychic?" a voice asked Ben.  
  
Ben looked up to see Sir Blakey hovering above him.  
  
"A hungry serpent that already knows what it's eaten." Sir Blakey wasn't laughing  
  
Ben looked back at Magnus as he dragged Kitty off towards Snape's office.  
  
Chapter 14 - "The Meeting"  
  
"Your teachers are concerned. You seem to be very good and attentive in class, understanding all the material and yet."  
  
Kitty did not say anything. Her head continued to pound as she watched Professor Snape pace back and forth across the room in front of her.  
  
"They asked me to speak to you about this."  
  
"About what?"  
  
"Your inability to do magic..any magic."  
  
"That's because I'm not a witch."  
  
Snape raised his eyebrow. His normal icy expression went even colder. "Don't play games with me. I am well aware of what you can do. Do you think I would have gone to all the trouble of getting you into the school if I was not sure of your abilities?"  
  
Kitty was speechless. So it had been Snape that had sent her the School invitation. Perhaps he had even put a spell on her parents so that they would agree to let her come. Maybe even he had sent her the books and required items before the year started. It only reinforced her suspicions.  
  
"Don't you want to learn to be a witch?" he asked slamming his hands down on either armrest of the chair where Kitty sat. He was now eye to eye with her. His dark hair peppered with grey streaks fell in strands across his face. "With your talents you could become stronger than Harry Potter. Don't you even know how very powerful you could become?"  
  
"I have no idea what you are talking about. Can I go now?" She rubbed the side of her head with her hand trying to dull the pounding in her head.  
  
"Ah yes. A headache right? Indeed you would from the counter spell I'm using against you."  
  
"Counter spell?" Kitty asked. "Counter spell to what? I can't cast any spells!"  
  
"But your talents up here." He tapped his finger on his temple. "They will make up for that. In time the spells will come. I'm sure of it." He stepped back from the chair and faced away from her. "In the meantime I will be assigning you tutoring sessions with a few of the other Professors for extra practice with your magic."  
  
"You just don't get it." Kitty said shaking her head. "I want to see Headmaster Black."  
  
"I'm afraid that is not possible right now." Snape walked over to window twiddling his wand rather triumphantly. "He has left the school for a few days on Hogwarts business."  
  
"How convenient." Kitty muttered. It was as if Snape had timed the absence of the headmaster with this opportunity to enforce his plan.  
  
Kitty was not at all surprised by his deviousness. She had been feeling the set-up since before her arrival. "May I go now sir?" she asked.  
  
Snape nodded. "Here is a new timetable for you listing the extra session I have arranged for you for practice. " He handed her a new scroll. "Dismissed."  
  
Kitty left the office. Magnus was waiting outside the door.  
  
"Hi Kitty." Magnus said. "Did everything go...okay?" The anger he had shown towards her was gone and he stood before her smiling as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.  
  
"Are you here to escort me back to the House now?" she spat out sarcastically.  
  
"No....I have far more important things to do..." He replied somewhat distracted.  
  
"I'm sure you do." Kitty mumbled. Her head still throbbed even though she was no longer near enough to Snape for his counter spell to be affecting her.  
  
What exactly did Snape think he knew about her? How had he found out about her secret? She had told no one, not even Ben.  
  
The other question that plagued her thoughts was how Trelawney and Ben mixed into the plan. What connection did it have to Snape's? Maybe she should have come right out and asked Snape? Confronted him right there in his office. But then again, perhaps it was better not to know. She ran down the steps to go and find Ben  
  
Had she turned around she would have seen Magnus's smile turn to a scowl as she went back down the steps towards the courtyard.  
  
  
  
Chapter 15 - "Who Can See Answers?"  
  
"Deaner!" Ben shouted across the courtyard. Deaner was standing talking to a bunch of students when he saw Ben come running up.  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"I need your help."  
  
Deaner raised an eyebrow. "With what? You already know everything about Quidditch." He said sarcastically.  
  
"No..with another student.a Prefect"  
  
Dean would have been a Prefect himself except that with the extra time required to run Quidditch practices and such he could not accept the position. "Who is it?"  
  
"Magnus Malfoy." Ben was really worried. Maybe Kitty was right and Snape was up to no good. "Please.?"  
  
"I'm not in the business of picking fights with other seniors."  
  
"But.."  
  
"I'm your Quidditch Captain, not your babysitter. If you have a problem with another student go and see Professor Trelawney about it, and don't let it interfere with your focus in the game tonight."  
  
Ben was about to head back up to the stair chamber when he saw Magnus through one of the windows overlooking the courtyard. He was looking down at them. "Where is she?" he yelled up at the window.  
  
Magnus pretended not to notice and continued on his way.  
  
"It's okay Ben I'm here." Kitty said as she ran towards him.  
  
"What happened? Did you see Snape?"  
  
Kitty told Ben about the tutoring Professor Snape had in mind for her. She even told him about Snape's insistence that she was a powerful witch.  
  
Ben laughed. "Powerful?.you can't even get a levitation spell to work."  
  
"I know I know," Kitty said. "I can't make ANY spells work."  
  
She then told him about Snape being behind her admittance to the school. The time for secrets was over. She'd have to come clean with Ben. If anyone was going to understand enough to help her, he would. After all she was convinced somehow he had a role to play in the conspiracy as well. "Let's go somewhere more private to talk."  
  
The common rooms were out of the question and the library was full of students studying. The only place they could think of that was quiet enough was out by the barn where they had their Care of Magical Creatures class.  
  
As they walked across the grass Kitty began to talk.  
  
"For as long as I can remember I always knew what other people thought of me. They all thought I was a bit strange. I didn't have too many friends. I didn't like hanging out and doing the same stuff the other muggle kids were doing, and I was sick a lot with headaches and bouts of insomnia. My parents weren't too worried though because I still always got good grades at school. They figured it was just a stage and I'd grow out of it. It's sort of funny but they didn't know that the reason I was so good at school was because I always knew all the answers."  
  
"Right.so you're a genius." Ben said. "And you read a lot." He motioned towards the stack of book she had tucked under her arm.  
  
"No.I'm not that smart.It's just that I can see the answers in their minds."  
  
Kitty proceeded to tell Ben about the strange feelings she would get when she concentrated. When she focused she could hear thoughts and feel feelings.  
  
"Are you saying that you can...you can read minds?" Ben asked. There was a bit of fear in his voice as if he had just found out his best friend was a werewolf.  
  
"And what's wrong with werewolves?" Kitty asked.  
  
Ben backed up in shock.  
  
"It's not what you think."  
  
"How do you know what I think? Are you reading my mind all the time?"  
  
"No..really I'm not trying to read anyone's mind, EVER. Sometimes I just can't block them out. But it's not a spell. It's just the way I am"  
  
Ben leaned up against the barn unsure of what to say when his eyes lit up with a thought. "I expect that mind reading is a rare talent for a witch. Maybe that's why Snape enrolled you into the school."  
  
"I think it goes even further than that. I think he fixed the Sorting."  
  
That is precisely the conclusion I have come to.  
  
Kitty jumped at the voice. Kanin strolled out from the woods past the barn and crept towards them. "What do you want with me?" Kitty yelled at the cat.  
  
Ben flipped a strange look at Kitty. She didn't need to read his mind to know why. . "It can talk! I can hear it okay." She explained.  
  
"The cat.. is talking to you?" Ben said. He looked at the cat. Its eyes had just shifted from green to orange. "That's pretty cool."  
  
Kitty was about to try to explain herself when Bens comment sunk in. "You think it's cool?  
  
"Hell ya! I wish I could talk to animals. That'd be really neat.Like Dr Doolittle."  
  
"Well I'm not really sure if I can talk to all animals. This is certainly the first cat I've ever talked to." Kitty said  
  
That's because I am not a cat.  
  
Kitty swung her head around to look at Kanin. "What?"  
  
"What'd it say? What'd it say?" Ben urged curiously.  
  
I am not any more what I seem than you are. I too have secrets.  
  
Kitty knelt down next to the cat. "Who are you?"  
  
I'm Harry Potter  
  
"What'd he say? Ben asked.  
  
Kitty sat down on the grass bewildered. "He says he's Harry Potter."  
  
Chapter 16 - "Revelations"  
  
I figure it was a deal they cut. Trelawney had managed to find out about you and your special ability and in exchange for the information Snape agreed to help Hufflepuff win the Quidditch Cup this year. That's where Ben must have come in. Snape scouted out the next Hogwarts Quidditch hopeful.  
  
Kitty sat cross legged on the grass with Ben beside her.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me who you were?"  
  
I'm undercover here. No one other than my superiors at the Ministry knows where I am. I came in at the start of the school year and have been hanging about the kitchen keeping an eye on things. The House elves there have really taken quite a shine to me.  
  
"You knew all this and you didn't tell me?" Kitty asked.  
  
I'm sorry Kitty. I was trying to point you in the right direction without endangering my cover at the school. I wasn't yet sure how Snape and Trelawney's actions were linked with my mission here. At first I thought the foul play at the Sorting was separate but now I am beginning to see that indeed the connections may be more dangerous than I originally thought.  
  
There were a million questions running through Kitty's mind at that moment but with the infamous Harry Potter now sitting before her she could not help but ask just one. "Does this have something to do with Lord Voldemort?"  
  
Ben clamped his hands over his ears. "Don't say that name!" he shouted.  
  
Harry shook his head. No. Voldemort is gone. This conspiracy is nothing more than an attempt to increase a house's reputation. Professor Trelawney roped Snape into cohorts with her by exploiting his desire to bring fame to his house. She knew he wouldn't be able to resist bringing a telepath to the great house of Salazar Slytherin.  
  
"Kinda like you did for Gryffindor." Kitty added. "So this whole mess is really about the damn Quidditch Cup then."  
  
Ben looked up. "Oh crap!.My game!" He jumped to his feet. "I gotta get going!"  
  
"But you can't go." Kitty cried out grabbing the sleeve of Ben's robe.  
  
"It's the first game!" Ben replied. "Deaner will kill me if I'm late!"  
  
Harry put his paw on Kitty's leg. It's okay. Let him go. Trelawney only wants him to play. He's in no danger.  
  
"You don't understand." Kitty pleaded as she brushed Potter aside. "You're going to get hurt. I know it."  
  
Ben laughed. "As long my beaters keep the bludgers away I'll be fine. Come and watch?"  
  
Go on. Nothing more can be done about this now. I'll have to talk with Sirius when he gets back later this week.  
  
Kitty nodded and followed Ben off at a run. In her minds eye she remembered the vision she had had the previous week. It was so real. And she had had such dreams before.  
  
  
  
Chapter 17 - "Game One"  
  
It was not only the first Hufflepuff game of the year but the first Quidditch game of the year. Many students from each of the houses came out to watch the event. Ben sat with his head down holding his broomstick tightly in his hand. This was the moment he had trained for. He had proven himself to be as good as his reputation. His stomach flip flopped and he wished his dad was there to watch.  
  
Deaner came up to him and put a hand on his shoulder. Neither of them said a word but it was understood that in the game, all disagreements would be put aside. As teammates they'd play together for the win. Ben nodded his head in acknowledgement.  
  
Coming out onto the field the two teams were met by a roar of cheers. It looked like the entire school was out in the stands. The coloured banners of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw decorated the field towers.  
  
"Lotta people out today." Ryan commented. "Guessing everyone's here to watch a little Quidditch." He added sarcastically.  
  
Deaner rolled his eyes and nodded at his member of his team as the announcer called out the team lineups.  
  
"From Hufflepuff.." A voice over the speaker announced,". returning for a second year, the beater Ryan Leafer and his new veteran comrade in arms, Mikael Kreimeh, a recent acquisition from Durmstrang. The Hufflepuff Chasers Guylaine Drummond and Naed Deaner. Shawn Janette in goal and playing his first year as seeker..Ben Morrison."  
  
In unison the Hufflepuff team mounted their broomsticks and kicked off in synchronicity. Taking off into the air they swooped up bypassing the stands in a perfect V formation. The crowd went crazy with cheers.  
  
"From Ravenclaw." the announcer continued."The beaters Buck Rogers and Bob Logger, collectively know as Double B, the chasers Dave Cappy and Brian Weirdon, Katarina Maata in net and the Ravenclaw seeker Ro Gagetown."  
  
Ravenclaw's team took off one after another like a freight train heading into the sky. When they reached the centre of the field they broke out like a shooting star flying off in each direction.  
  
Soon all twelve players were ready to take their position for the start of the game. Ben had honed his skills for hundreds of hours but had never played in front of a crowd such as this. He tried to ignore the chants as he rose up into the air and into the starting seeker position.  
  
Just pretend you're back on the pitch at home with your Dad and you'll do fine He heard a familiar voice say in his head.  
  
He looked below to see Kitty watching from the very base of one of the towers.  
  
Ben looped once more and then fell into position opposite Ro Gagetown.  
  
The whistle blew. Ben looked below at the Referee as she released the Golden Snitch.  
  
"Vatch out! Eencoming!" he heard Kreimeh say as he watched his fellow beater smash one of the bludgers out of the way. Guylaine and Deaner were off and on the rush, passing the ball back and forth between them as they sped towards Ravenclaw goal.  
  
Ben watched as Ro kicked off and dove after the snitch. Ben couldn't see where it was but he figured that if Ro could, he'd best follow him until he caught sight of the elusive Snitch himself. Diving hard he concentrated on all the techniques his dad had taught him. He focused solely on the game.  
  
Kitty sat below. Only a few weeks earlier she had been blissfully ignorant of the existence of a Magic school or the game of Quidditch, and yet now she was attending classes in Wizardry and watching a game played completely on flying broomsticks. It was quite an adjustment in one's perceptions of reality.  
  
She yearned to talk more with Harry Potter about the conspiracy behind the Sorting and yet she found it hard to concentrate on the questions that plagued her mind. The game was a far more exciting distraction.  
  
"GO BEN!" she shouted at the top of her lungs as she saw him change direction as it seemed he finally spied the Golden Snitch. The race was on as the two seekers were neck in neck after the Snitch.  
  
Ravenclaw was up three points.  
  
Kitty was looking through the vast crowds of students and teachers in the stands. When strange things started to happen.  
  
First, a spike of pain ran through her head, just for a second. Then looking up at the sky she saw dark clouds move in. Clouds that cast no shadow on the Quidditch pitch.  
  
What was happening?  
  
Her head then started to pound. She gazed across the pitch to see Snape and Trelawney watching skyward. Both of them had somewhat confused expressions on their faces as they watched the match. Perhaps they were disappointed in the Hufflepuff's performance.  
  
Was Hufflepuff supposed to be winning by now?  
  
Kitty stood up and then the whole world started to sway. Holding onto the railing she tried to focus on Ben when she saw one of the Ravenclaw chasers heading straight towards him. Ben was heading one way, his eyes solely on the Snitch. Cappy was looking backwards over his shoulder waiting for a pass. Neither of them saw the course of collision they were on. Kitty was about to scream but it was too late as Cappy smashed squarely into Ben knocking him completely off his broom. Cappy managed to maintain a grip on his broom while Ben plummeted towards the ground.  
  
Kitty was too dizzy to run to the pitch where Ben had fallen into the sand. Several people including the referee had made their way over to him. He wasn't moving.  
  
She squeezed her eyes tight trying to regain her balance.  
  
No no no no no. This can't be happening.  
  
When she opened her eyes again, for what felt like mere seconds, she could see that the game was still being played. The sky was a back to its bright blue devoid of clouds. Ben was still firmly on his broomstick and in hot pursuit of the Golden Snitch.  
  
"Are you alright child? " An icy voice said from beside her.  
  
Kitty looked up into the face of Professor Snape. She glanced back across the field to where he had been sitting before with Professor Trelawney only moments before.  
  
"Stop the game." Kitty said. "Please." She didn't have time to explain. There was no time.  
  
Snape raised an eyebrow and fumbled looking for something beneath his robes.  
  
"Please.STOP the GAME!" Kitty pleaded as she looked at Snape. "Something bad is going to happen."  
  
Kitty looked up again as she saw Cappy and Ben collide in mid air, once again. Just as they had moments earlier, just as they had that night before.  
  
Was it real this time or another vision?  
  
Ben tumbled from his broomstick and plummeted towards the ground head first  
  
Kitty saw Snape whip out his wand. "Aquarium Transfiguralis", he shouted as a bolt of blue light shot out from the tip of his wand and struck the sand on the pitch.  
  
The sand on the pitch instantly turned to water as Ben splashed into the pool. Cries arose from the crowd. The sudden onslaught of worried thoughts from the crowd made Kitty's head spin once more and she tried to keep focused on the scene. She was vaguely aware that Snape was holding her up.  
  
Several people waded out in the water where Ben had landed. As per the rulebook the game continued despite the unfortunate happenings below.  
  
Kitty watched though clouded vision as they pulled Ben from the water to the sidelines. He wasn't moving. Moments after that she heard the whistle blow announcing the end of the game. Ro, uncontested in his chase, had snared the Golden Snitch. Ravenclaw had won.  
  
"It's okay." Snape soothed as best he could. "He's alright."  
  
Kitty saw Ben moving ever so slightly on the ground as the Game medics attended to him. She looked over her shoulder and saw Kanin poking his tiny cat head out from under one of the tower draperies. Hiding and watching.  
  
Then she passed out.  
  
Chapter 18 - "Visions"  
  
Kitty awoke to find herself back in the hospital wing of the school once again. It seemed she was getting more familiar with this room than she was with some of her classrooms.  
  
"Madame Pomfrey?' Kitty called out.  
  
The stout round woman appeared in the doorway with a large grin on her face. "Welcome back child." She said as she plopped down on the side of the bed. "How are you feeling?"  
  
"Um.fine I guess." Kitty replied. She did not have to ask what had happened. Kitty remembered everything. "How long have I been here?"  
  
"Three days now." Kitty bit her lip. She had never had this happen to her before. At least not this bad. Sure, the insomnia and fainting spells were common when her mind couldn't cope with her special talents but the recent visions she had dismissed as dreams had never affected her to quite an extreme as this.  
  
"And Ben?" She asked changing the subject.  
  
"The young lad they brought it after the Quidditch game? Oh he's fine. Quick thinking by that Professor Snape to turn the pitch to water. Saved his life it did. Ben went back to class two days ago. Took a bit of time for the spells to reset that arm of his but he'll be fine. I reckon he'll be back in time to play in the next Quidditch game. From what I heard he almost had the Snitch when the accident happened."  
  
Kitty was relieved that Ben was okay.  
  
Madame Pomfrey smiled. "Professor Snape was by again this morning."  
  
"Again?"  
  
"Oh he's been coming in several times a day. It's nice to see a Housemaster so concerned with the students in his house."  
  
Kitty unconsciously shivered at the mention of his name. "Can I go?" Kitty asked.  
  
"Well." Madame Pomfrey looked at her, "I'd still like to run a few more spells on you. I still have no idea why we could not wake you although there doesn't appear to be anything wrong with you. Other than a slight fluctuation in your aura I'm at a real loss for a magical explanation. But now that you're awake it'll be easier for me to get a proper read on you. You stay right there, I'll get my spells."  
  
Kitty sat back in bed and stared at the ceiling while Madame Pomfrey dashed off to the other room to get her spell books and potions. The ceiling was blue like the sky and big fluffy clouds moved across it as if it really were the sky.  
  
I can't stay long.  
  
Kitty looked towards the door that now stood slightly ajar. Harry Potter's head appeared around the edge of the door. His ears were perked up, his whiskers twitching, as he checked to see if the coast was clear before he cautiously entered the room. His long tail waved back and forth nervously as he slunk up to Kitty's bed.  
  
"What the devil is going on?" she said out loud to the cat.  
  
No cursing. It is not becoming of a young lady. And speak with your mind. Madame Pomfrey will only keep you here longer if she hears you out here talking to yourself.  
  
Kitty rolled her eyes Okay then. How's this?  
  
Much better. Harry sat down in front of her.  
  
You said Ben wouldn't get hurt and he did. I thought you said Professor Trelawney wants him to win the Quidditch Cup for Hufflepuff.  
  
Indeed I believe she does. But I don't think Ben's fall was anything more than an accident.  
  
Kitty shook her head. Maybe so.but I could have stopped it. I should have said something before the game..  
  
Yes perhaps you could have but no one would have listened.  
  
At this comment Kitty looked directly into Harry's eyes. What do you mean by that? Harry did not answer. Why are you here?  
  
Harry placed one of his paws on her hand. His eyes were changing colour from orange to yellow and then to green rather rapidly.  
  
I'm here to watch over you.  
  
Kitty raised an eyebrow.  
  
What?!.... Why? 'Cuz I can talk to cats? Cheat on tests? Read the answers form the teacher's minds before they even ask the questions? Because I'm a muggle..  
  
Harry shook his head interrupting her. You are not a muggle.  
  
Kitty pouted out her lip in frustration. Then why can't I make ANY spells work. Muggles can't do magic and reading minds doesn't make me a witch. It's not a magic trick it's just who I am.  
  
That is indeed true. But even Snape does not know the true power you possess. THAT is really why I am here to watch out for you. Beyond the telepathy, your other talents.  
  
"The visions." Kitty whispered aloud. "You know about the visions?"  
  
Harry nodded. His tail whipped back and forth. It was merely a prophecy known within the higher confidences at the ministry that'd you'd grow up able to foresee the future. It is now clearly evident that those talents have surfaced and the prophecy has been fulfilled.  
  
If Trelawney only knew that I can do what she only pretends to know how to do, she'd have second guessed trading me to Snape, for Ben." Kitty mused. It was almost ironic that Professor Trelawney, the Divination professor, had passed on the opportunity to have a fellow seer in her midst. That is of course if Trelawney really was a seer as she so believed of herself.  
  
So I can read thoughts and see bad stuff that's gonna happen to my friends. Plus I have a guardian angel who follows me around disguised as a cat. That still doesn't explain why I'm failing at all my spells.  
  
In light of all this and you're still upset about the spells? Harry joked. There's a simple explanation as to why you can't do magic.  
  
Behind them the door creaked. Harry turned and darted off the bed vanishing in to the only corner in the brightly lit room that was hidden in shadow.  
  
Kitty lay back in bed and closed her eyes as if sleeping.  
  
She knew immediately who it was. Her head started to ache. She didn't want to talk to Snape but she figured that this might be her best chance to get him to outwardly admit to his deceitfulness at the Sorting, in front of a hidden Harry Potter no less.  
  
She opened her eyes as he approached the bed.  
  
"You're finally awake." There was no usual coldness in his voice, only concern.  
  
Kitty nodded. "I'm sorry I missed so many classes."  
  
"That is not as important as your well-being. You gave me quite a fright when you fainted in my arms at the Quidditch match." Snape still did not smile, but Kitty felt as if he was genuinely worried that she was comatose for almost three days. "Has Madame Pomfrey figured out why you were ill for so long?"  
  
Kitty shook her head. "I think it has to with my headaches." She looked him straight in the eye. They both knew whatever spell he was using on himself to keep his thoughts unreadable to her was causing her head to hurt.  
  
She wanted to come right out and ask him how he had fixed the Sorting Hat to call out the wrong house names. She wondered how many other first year students had been wrongfully placed in one of the Houses.  
  
Ask him nothing. Tell him nothing  
  
Kitty saw the flash of green eyes from the shadows across the room.  
  
I wasn't aware I was broadcasting my thoughts. Kitty mind spoke to Harry.  
  
You weren't. Body language.  
  
Kitty looked down at her hands. She had twisted the blanket in her fists into a tight roll.  
  
There was an empty silence in the room as Kitty fumbled looking for something to say to Snape.  
  
The silence was broken when Madam Pomfrey returned, her arms full of books and vials. "Oh...hello Professor Snape." In her bustling one of the vials rolled off the top of her stack and clanked unbroken to the floor. It rolled towards the corner where Harry was hiding.  
  
Kitty jumped out of bed. "Please, let me help you with that." She said as she dashed towards the corner. Snape was too fast for her and reached down to pick up the vial. He jumped back, startled when a cat dashed out from the shadows and disappeared out the doorway.  
  
"Now what was a cat doing in here?" Madame Pomfrey asked as Snape handed back the vial.  
  
"He's mine." Kitty said. "Well sort of. He's a stray. The house elves in the kitchen found him and since I didn't have a cat or owl or anything when I arrived they said I could adopt him."  
  
"Funny, I haven't seen him about before." Snape mused.  
  
Kitty smiled. "Well like I said. He lives downstairs in the kitchen I hardly see him myself. One of the house elves must have brought him up to see me."  
  
"Indeed." Snape pulled his long black cloak shut. "Well since you are feeling better, I'd best get back to my classes." He said as he turned to leave.  
  
"Professor Snape?" Kitty said as she climbed back into bed.  
  
Snape turned and looked at her.  
  
Outside the door Harry eavesdropped  
  
"Thank you for saving Ben."  
  
A corner of Snape's mouth turned up and he nodded and then left the room.  
  
"Right then." Madame Pomfrey said. She grabbed a vial of purplish liquid and handed it to Kitty. "Down the hatch."  
  
Chapter 19 - "Closet Discoveries"  
  
"How's the arm?" Kitty whispered to Ben. Professor Scooter had his back towards the class as he recited the list of ingredients for a potion to counteract allergies.  
  
Ben smiled and laced his two hands together cracking his knuckles. "Like nothing happened at all." He flexed his one arm first and then followed up with a few other muscles poses before Kitty could barely contain her laughter.  
  
"We have to talk." Kitty said in between giggles. "This thing is bigger that we thought?"  
  
"Did you see Harry again?"  
  
Kitty placed a finger up against her mouth. "Ssssshhhhh don't say that name.KANIN. came to see me while I was in the hospital wing. He knows about Snape and Trelawney's bewitching of the Sorting Hat but that's not the reason he's at Hogwarts undercover."  
  
"Well then.." Ben said somewhat distracted as he continued writing down the items as Professor Scooter dictated. "Why is he here?"  
  
"I think he's here..because. I knew you were going to fall."  
  
Ben dropped his quill and looked over at Kitty. "What?" He said it loud enough that Professor Scooter stopped speaking and turned to face the class.  
  
"What?" Professor Scooter repeated. "Master Morrison. Are you having a problem hearing my list of ingredients?"  
  
Ben blushed. "No sir."  
  
Professor Scooter raised an eyebrow as he looked back and forth between Ben and Kitty as if fully aware they had been talking throughout his lecture. "Perhaps you would like to take up a seat at the front then so that you might hear better."  
  
"But.but I can hear you fine.." A stern look from Professor Scooter and Ben quickly grabbed his books and cauldron. He gave a sad glance at Kitty and then sheepishly moved up to the front of the room.  
  
"Now then." Professor Scooter resumed. "I believe the next item you will need to find is Bog's root. This weed grows." he turned his back from the class once again and continued his lecture.  
  
Ben picked up his quill. He nearly cried out in surprise when he heard Kitty's voice inside his head.  
  
Can you meet me after class? I need you help.  
  
Ben shivered. It was weird hearing Kitty's thought in his head. In fact, it was downright creepy. He didn't look around but nodded his head enough for Kitty to see.  
  
Kitty picked up her quill and started copying down the list of ingredients herself. She knew how terribly disturbing her talents were to Ben but was thankful at least he didn't ignore her.  
  
Kitty and Ben strolled out in the sunlight across the courtyard towards the owlery. Ben had to check in on his owl Pfliachu and send a short note to his Mom who no doubt would start worrying about him if she didn't hear from him every other day at least. He purposely did not mention anything in the note about his near death on the Quidditch Pitch.  
  
They walked in silence. Kitty had so much she wanted to tell with Ben and yet she didn't quite know how to start.  
  
It was Ben who finally spoke first. "How did you know I was going to fall?" he asked.  
  
"I saw it happen. Remember when I was in the Hospital the first time?"  
  
"Yeah.you said you saw two teams practicing out in a storm.."  
  
"And I saw you fall..."  
  
"Oh yeah.that's right. I'm sorry. I didn't believe you. I thought you were..uh."  
  
"Talking crazy?"  
  
Ben blushed with embarrassment.  
  
"If I'd have been you I'd have thought the same thing. I thought I'd been imagining it myself until it happened again. I had the same vision on the pitch a few moments before your collision."  
  
"And then you warned Snape in time to change the pitch to water?"  
  
"Yes.I did." Kitty watched as Ben put the pieces together in his head. It was already a shock to find out that your friend could read minds but to add premonitions to that. It would not surprise her if Ben wanted nothing more to do with a freak like her.  
  
Instead he did surprise her as he turned to face her taking her two hands in his. "Then I have you to thank for saving my life."  
  
"I.I should have warned you before..I could have told someone."  
  
"But they wouldn't have believed you. I wouldn't have believed you." Ben laughed. "Heck I still don't know if I believe you. But I'll sure listen to you...just in case." He winked as they entered the owlery.  
  
Kitty smiled and nodded her head.  
  
Ben opened the latch on Pfliachu's cage and took out the cooing bird. "So that's why Kanin is here isn't it?" Ben made the connections just as Kitty had. Harry Potter was under cover to watch out for her.  
  
"I think so."  
  
Pfliachu rolled over in Ben's arms exposing her belly to him. "Spooky.you're such a stupid bird." He muttered as he rubbed the owl's feathery belly. It closed it eyes and relaxed. "I ask you.is this anyway for a dignified animal to act?" The comments didn't bother Pfliachui one bit. He gave Pfliachu the letter to his folks and they watched as his owl took off. On the way out of the Owlery Pfliachui almost collided with another owl returning from flight. Ben stood shaking his head as the two birds hovered for a few moments exchanging several loud squawks at each other.  
  
They crossed the courtyard and reentered the school. Standing at the bottom of the stairwell that would take them up to Divination class, Kitty stopped abruptly.  
  
"Come on." Ben said "We don't want to be late. I think Trelawney's going to be teaching us how to read a crystal ball today, or some such nonsense." He leaned over close enough to whisper. "I reckon if she only knew you were the real deal.she'd be jealous."  
  
"Magnus." Kitty interrupted.  
  
Ben straightened up. "What about him?" It was no secret that Ben still was upset over the punch Magnus had thrown at him a few days before.  
  
"He's here." She said as she pointed at the small closet door by the bottom of the stairwell. "He's there."  
  
"What? Where?"  
  
"In there." Kitty walked up to the door and tried the handle. "It's locked."  
  
"Magnus is in there? Well maybe it's a kind of Prefect detention. Lock 'em up for a while in the closet until they learn not to throw their weight around and bully the first years."  
  
Kitty ignored him. "Help me get the door open." Kitty kicked at the door frantically. "Magnus?" she called out.  
  
"Step back." Ben said as he pulled his wand out of his back pocket. "Watch this.Alohamora" the lock clicked open. "Good one eh? I just learned it in."  
  
"Help me.quickly." Kitty pulled the door open. It was dark inside. It seemed empty except for something that was leaning up against the wall at the back. "Magnus?"  
  
Ben walked slowly over to the thing standing up in the corner with his wand out ready to fight. He lowered his wand and beckoned to Kitty. "Kitty.you were right. It IS him.uh.I think." He knocked a few times on Magnus's forehead.  
  
As her eyes adjusted she could see that the thing propped up against the wall was indeed Magnus. He was stiff as a board tipped backwards leaning up against the back of the closet. His eyes did not blink. His chest did not rise. It was if it were not really Magnus at all, but only a statue of Magnus. Kitty knew differently.  
  
"What's wrong with him?" Ben asked.  
  
"I don't know but we'd better alert one of the teachers."  
  
"How'd you know he was there?" Ben asked.  
  
"I could hear a whisper.just a whisper coming from the closet. I knew it was him." Kitty looked into the frozen eyes of the Slytherin Prefect. She looked back at Ben  
  
"What did he say?"  
  
"Draco."  
  
Ben and Kitty looked at each other, "Draco Malfoy?"  
  
Chapter 20 - "Danger Harry Potter, Danger"  
  
They were late for Divination class but luckily the school nurse Madame Pomfrey had written them a note explaining their lateness to Professor Trelawney. "Please take your seats both of you and we will continue."  
  
Ben had been right and the student's all crowded around the large crystal ball that Professor Trelawney had perched on a white marble pedestal in the center of the room.  
  
"I don't expect any of you to see any images yet but I want you to get accustomed to the focus and meditation that is required see visions in the crystal ball." Trelawney lectured. "Please close your eyes and try to clear your thoughts. One by one we will each try to get a reading from the ball when I think you are ready."  
  
Kitty almost laughed. You don't prepare for them. They just happened, and then you passed out. She wondered if Trelawney had ever actually had a real vision or if she only thought she did. Crystal Balls, tarot cards, tea leaves, astronomy.it was all just junk in Kitty's eyes. From the looks on several of the other student's eyes, they ate it up like candy. If they only knew the curse that candy carried with it.  
  
Ben was sitting cross-legged on a pillow on the floor along with the rest of the students trying to concentrate and slow his breathing down, focus and purge his mind of all thoughts that would distract him from getting a good reading. Or so it appeared. Kitty knew Ben was really thinking about the next Quidditch practice he had and the new move he hoped to show Deaner. He was also thinking about lunch.  
  
"Kitty?"  
  
Kitty opened her eyes. Professor Trelawney was kneeling in front of her. "Would you like to try?" She held out the heavy crystal ball towards her.  
  
"Uh..no.I don't think I'm ready yet. You see I've got this tune stuck in my head and I'm having a problem getting rid of it." She lied.  
  
"I'll try it." Tia Whyte piped up from one of the large pillows where she sat in meditation. "I'm ready."  
  
Trelawney smiled and passed the ball to Tia who placed it on the ground in front of her. She placed her hands along either side of the ball and focused her eyes and thoughts on it.  
  
You could really have some fun here if you made her see something in that silly ball  
  
Ben's voice echoed quite clearly in Kitty's mind. Kitty was quite aware that Ben had a rather odd sense of humor. It was no surprise that he liked practical jokes.  
  
Come on do it. What's the point of having those powers if you can't enjoy them?  
  
Kitty flashed a glare at Ben. She had never used her telepathy to manipulate another and she hoped she never would. But still the idea did seem like fun.  
  
Ben rolled his eyes.  
  
Kitty watched as Tia continued to focus on the ball. The lights inside changed colours as the others in the class looked on in awe.  
  
Kitty's throat felt dry and she closed her eyes in boredom. Her thoughts wandered to the Kitchen where the house elves were working on that evening's dinner. Maybe she could find out what was on the dinner menu for Ben. Harry was sleeping on a small blanket in the corner of the room. It must be terribly frustrating to be undercover posing as a cat, on a babysitting mission. She watched as a long dark shadow crept over him. Someone was standing just over top of him.  
  
Harry..look out.  
  
There was a silent flash of crimson light and Harry jumped up and backwards up onto a table full of dishes.  
  
The shadow took form and Kitty realized it was Magnus. What was he doing in the kitchen when they had just taken him frozen like a statue to the infirmary hours earlier?  
  
Ben looked over to see Kitty with her eyes shut. Sweat beaded on her brow.  
  
Kitty opened her eyes to look at the class still gathered around Tia and the crystal ball. Behind Tia at the back of the room Kitty saw Magnus, wand in one hand, bag in the other, advance towards Harry. Harry had the hair raised on his back and was hissing at Magnus's approach.  
  
"Kitty?" Ben whispered. "Are you okay?"  
  
Kitty was still staring at the back of the room where she could see Harry backing up into the corner.  
  
"No.run....get away.."Kitty whispered aloud.  
  
"Kitty?" Ben said again louder this time. "KITTY?" he grabbed her by the shoulders.  
  
Trelawney looked up to see Ben shaking Kitty who stood starring, transfixed on the action unseen by the rest of the class. Magnus made a grab at Harry with the bag.  
  
"GET AWAY FROM HIM!!" Kitty screamed. She jumped up to her feet pushing Ben backwards off his pillow.  
  
Kitty looked past the other students at the back of the room. It was clear to Ben that she was not seeing the classroom full of students but something else, somewhere else, maybe even sometime else,  
  
"Is something the matter Kitty?" Trelawney asked, rather indignant at the sudden outburst during her class.  
  
"It's okay Professor." Ben quickly replied. He grabbed Kitty by the wrist and pulled her back down to her pillow. "She's just daydreaming. It's just a side effect of the medication Madame Pomfrey gave her. They told her this might happen if she falls asleep. I just need to get her up and walking" The other students started to laugh as Kitty continued stare transfixed on nothing. "Can we be excused?"  
  
It was quite apparent Trelawney didn't believe his lie but she brushed her hand towards the door ushering them out the class. "Come back when you can both manage to stay awake during one of my classes."  
  
Ben grabbed Kitty by the hand and pulled her back to her feet and down the spiral staircase. Kitty's face was flushed but not with embarrassment.  
  
"What was that all about?" Ben asked. That was the second class in a row that they had gotten in trouble in. They were lucky neither Professor had deducted points from their houses.  
  
"He caught him. He's going to catch him." Kitty muttered. She felt exhausted. All she wanted to do was sleep and yet she had seen Harry Potter kidnapped.or rather catnapped by Magnus Malfoy in the kitchen. Had it happened already? Was it happening right now? How could it with Magnus in the infirmary?  
  
"Who caught who with what now?" Ben asked trying to get Kitty to speak more coherently.  
  
Kitty shook her head in frustration. "Harry Potter is in trouble."  
  
Chapter 21 - "The Catnapping"  
  
It took almost fifteen minutes for Kitty and Ben to get down to the kitchen. With the ever changing staircases and the endless hallways in the school it was easy to get lost or delayed. Along the way Kitty described to Ben, exactly what she had seen.  
  
"Why didn't Harry change back into himself and fight him?"  
  
"I don't know." Kitty replied as they rounded the last staircase. "He snuck up so fast and caught Harry off guard Maybe Magnus cast a spell that blocked his transformation."  
  
"Then how did he know it was Harry?"  
  
"I don't know."  
  
"Where is he taking him?"  
  
"I don't know."  
  
"Why would he want to kidnap Harry.?"  
  
"I DON'T KNOW!" Kitty shouted. "I don't know why things happen I just know that they did..or are going to. And I'm not even sure about that."  
  
"But Magnus is a statue."  
  
"Yes.that's true." Kitty replied "Which means..."  
  
"That he isn't Magnus?" Ben answered surprised by his deductions.  
  
The answer hit Ben and Kitty at the same time.  
  
"It's Draco."  
  
It was no secret how much the Malfoy family had lost when Harry had defeated Lord Voldemort and his followers the Deatheaters. Lucious Malfoy had been a Deatheater and Draco was assumed to be as well although it was never proven. It was no surprise that he might want some kind of revenge on Potter for the demise of his righteous family name.  
  
Kitty pushed at the huge double doors that led into the school's kitchen. "Kanin!" she called out. The place was an absolute mess. Elves dashed about the place in a frenzy cleaning up the dishes that lay shattered all over the floor. They didn't even notice Ben and Kitty enter.  
  
"We just missed them I reckon." Ben said.  
  
"KANIN!" Kitty grabbed one of the house elves by the arm as he dashed past. "Where is Kanin?" she demanded.  
  
"Mistress Kitty. Silly cat tried to run. Big mess.so much to clean up now."  
  
"Run from who?" Ben asked as he knelt down next to the elf.  
  
"He say he do no harm to cat. He say he only here to catch him to take to checkup, make sure he is okay and healthy."  
  
"And Kanin ran?"  
  
"He did. Knocking things over this way and that way." The elf waved his hand at the mess Harry had caused in his attempts to flee Draco's capture.  
  
"Did he get away?" Kitty asked. She still had some hope that Harry had managed to escape Draco's attack.  
  
The elf shook his head. "No..but he'll be back soon. Cat is good at keeping mice out from kitchen. He works better than mouse spells."  
  
Kitty released her grasp on the elf and he scurried off to help the others clean up the mess.  
  
"Any idea where the student might have taken him?" Ben asked.  
  
"Think Kitty think. " She muttered to herself trying to figure out if she had seen anything in her vision that would tell her where Draco had taken him. "I don't know. I just don't know"  
  
"Can you look for Draco using.your uh." he pointed at her head. He wasn't sure how Kitty's powers worked but it was worth mentioning. At this point they needed to try anything they could.  
  
Kitty tried to focus her thoughts, looking for Draco. She felt the dull ache she most often associated with Snape.  
  
"Of course." Kitty mumbled. "Why didn't I see it before?" It was clear to her now when Draco had switched places with Magnus. It was back when Kitty had been taken to the meeting with Snape. Magnus had shown up to escort her and she had gotten a headache even before reaching Snape's office. Draco must be using the same spell Snape used to keep her from reading his thoughts. That way she couldn't discover who he really was. "He's using a blocking spell. I can't find him up here. "She tapped her finger against her temple. "Oh Ben what are we going to do? I think he's going to do what Voldemort couldn't, and kill Harry Potter!"  
  
"Can you find Harry?"  
  
Kitty's eyes opened wide. Of course. That was it. She could try to contact Harry. "Good thinking Ben."  
  
HARRY! Kitty squeezed her eyes tight and though about the cat. HARRY!  
  
There was no answer. NO NO NO.it might be too late. "Oh Ben.."  
  
"Calm down. Try again. Maybe he is just out cold or under a sleeping spell. You might have to wake him up."  
  
Kitty focused again. This time she heard something very quiet at the back of her mind.  
  
Kitty? The thoughts were faint, as if his mind was very far away from hers.  
  
Harry? Where are you? "I hear him Ben..I hear him." We can help you... Where are you?  
  
There was no answer at first. She thought he had slipped away again when she heard a reply. Dark. Can't see. Hear water. Waves.  
  
"He thinks he's near water but he doesn't know. He's locked up in a bag or box or something and can't see anything."  
  
Harry? She called out again. This time there was no reply.  
  
"NO.he's gone again." Kitty cried out. "He was here to watch me and he walked right into a trap. Draco used me as bait to draw Harry out. This is all my fault. I wish I had never come to the school." Kitty was almost in hysterics, tears welling up in her eyes.  
  
Ben grabbed her by the shoulders and looked into her eyes. "Come on..we don't have time for this. We have to save Harry. He needs us. You have to keep it together."  
  
Kitty looked at his green eyes. She didn't need any visions to tell her why he'd be a good Quidditch captain down the road. "You're right..I'll try."  
  
"Ok then. "He said taking her by the hand. "There's only two places that have enough water to make waves. The Quidditch Pitch or the Lake. Since they are still working on fixing the pitch I reckon Draco's gone off to the lake to try and drown Harry Potter." Kitty nodded in agreement.  
  
He took Kitty's hand and they headed off towards the shore of the Lake. "How many giant squids you say lived in there?"  
  
"Three." Kitty replied as they dashed across the field. "Enid, Bertruda and Max."  
  
"Just great! And we don't have the class on the care of magical giant squids until next week." Ben joked trying to lighten the mood. Kitty was too worried but managed to crack a smile anyways.  
  
"There he is!" Ben shouted as they came over the crest of the hill overlooking the Lake.  
  
They could both see a small figure out on the lake in one of the School's rowboats. With everyone in class it would have been easy to slip a rowboat out from the boathouse and out onto the lake without drawing too much attention.  
  
Kitty strained her eyes to see if it was indeed Draco in the boat. The ache in her head confirmed that it was. Kitty ran up to the boathouse. "We won't make in time." She said looking at the rowboats. "He's going to drown him in the lake as soon as he reaches the middle."  
  
"I could get there faster if I had my broom." Ben said.  
  
"But it's back in the locker room." Kitty replied. "We don't have enough time to run back and get it."  
  
"It's not that far back. You have to stall him Kitty until I can get it."  
  
"Stall him how? I can't work any spells. I probably can't even make these stupid boats row fast."  
  
"You'll think of something." He gently placed his index finger on her forehead. "Telepathy and Prophecy are not your only talents." He smiled at her. "I'll be right back okay." He didn't give her time to reply as he took off running full tilt back towards Hogwarts and the locker room where his Quidditch broom was locked up. Kitty was now standing alone at the side of the lake.  
  
How do I stall him? Think, think, think. How do I stall him? How do I stall..ENID?  
  
The idea struck her. Maybe she could contact one of the giant squids that lived in the lake to save Harry. Or at least keep Draco occupied long enough for Ben to get back with his broom.  
  
She had never tried to contact an animal. Kanin didn't count since it was really Harry Potter. She closed her eyes and searched out for what she could only assume was the mind of a giant squid.  
  
Please, please help me.  
  
Who are you?  
  
Kitty was surprised at the clarity of the thoughts coming from below the surface of the water. It was almost human. It was hard to describe the sensation of making contact with the strange mind.  
  
My name is Kitty. I'm a student here and I need your help.  
  
I am Heidi.  
  
Kitty thought she knew all the names of the Giant Squids but perhaps she was wrong. Maybe there were four Squids. I need your help urgently..for Harry's sake.  
  
Harry? Harry Potter?  
  
Yes! Harry Potter is in danger. He's going to drown him I think.  
  
Harry Potter. Friend. Yes. I will help.  
  
The rowboat. He's locked in a box on the rowboat.  
  
Kitty half expected to see the rowboat hit by one of the giant squids tentacles but instead there seemed to be no water movement at all.  
  
Instead Kitty could hear only a beautiful sound rising up from the lake. Someone under the water was singing. Kitty could see that Draco had stopped rowing. He sat motionless in the rowboat gazing at the water, almost as if hypnotized by the song that emanated from below.  
  
Maybe it wasn't the squid Kitty had contacted at all. Kitty thought back to the Hogwarts History Book. There were more than giant squids that lived under the lake.  
  
"Mermaids." Kitty whispered. "Heidi must be a mermaid." Indeed that made sense to Kitty. The merfolk that lived under the lake were very intelligent beings and thankfully they must have also been friends of Harry Potter. Heidi must have been a very young mermaiden since her beautiful voice was so high pitched it caused the surface of the water to ripple. The hairs on the back of Kitty's neck stood up as she too listened to the song. It was uncertain how long the tune continued. Time seemed almost frozen somehow and only the sonic ripples moved across the water's surface.  
  
Draco twitched in the boat trying to fight the hypnotic tune. He was a very strong Wizard and the song would not sustain Draco's attention for much longer.  
  
"Ben.please hurrrreeeeeee" Kitty prayed as she suddenly felt the wind whip past her as a blur that could only have been Ben blasted past her on his broom and out towards the rowboat. She felt her hope return as Ben quickly covered the distance towards the rowboat. He'd be at the boat in mere seconds, grab the box containing Harry and then fly back.  
  
The song ended and she could see Draco shake his head dispelling the temporary trance. He grabbed the small black box and was about to toss it overboard.  
  
A human might last a few minutes under the water, maybe long enough for the Merfolk to rescue them, but a cat?.. with such tiny lungs? It would probably take less than half a minute in the icy water before Harry Potter would drown.  
  
Ben was almost upon the rowboat. From his broomstick he could see Draco grab the box and lift it up into the air over his head. He didn't speak. He didn't gloat. He simply hoisted the box over his head in triumph. Ben kicked his heels and the broom took off into overdrive. He wrapped his knees around his broomstick and swung himself upside down on the broom allowing him to make a grab for the box.  
  
Draco pushed his hands forwards as if to throw the box only to be surprised that the box no longer was in his possession. Ben was flying off clutching the box tightly in his hands still dangling upside down on his broomstick. Laughter erupted from his throat as if he had just caught the snitch in the final game of the season. He had caught his prize. "I did it!"  
  
Kitty's heart leaped. Ben truly had done it. He saved Harry.  
  
Suddenly there was a flash of white lightning that zigzagged out from the rowboat and struck the back end of Ben's broom. It caught fire.  
  
"BEN!" Kitty cried out as she saw the flames jutting out from the broom as he flew. Draco had his wand out and, unlike Magnus who was only a student with a student's bag of tricks, Draco was a full fledged and very dangerous Wizard.  
  
Ben grabbed a hold of his broom with one hand and swung himself back right side up, still maintain a firm grip on the box. He started to pull back around, cutting a wide arc back across the lake towards Kitty and the safety of the shore.  
  
Kitty could do nothing. Only watch. She could not cast any spells to help. She could not invade Draco's mind and stop him that way either.  
  
Another bolt flashed out from Draco's wand. Ben dipped down and the blast narrowly missed his head. He pulled up on the broom handle tilting the back of his broom downwards as he flew. The burning bristles were immediately extinguished but the damage to his broom had slowed his speed quite significantly. Significantly enough that it could cost him a direct hit by Draco's magic.  
  
Draco still did not speak, yell out, or otherwise make a sound. He only pointed his wand and fired again. Kitty was transfixed on Ben's peril that she never even saw the figure appear beside her.  
  
Ben knew the next one would be a sure hit but he could not risk a dodge and still keep the box in his hands. At the last second he looked at the shore. Standing next to Kitty was a man in long black robes. It was Snape.  
  
Ben looked back at Draco and braced for impact. But the lightning bolt never hit. He saw the light of the bolt shoot out from Draco's wand but as it arced towards him it instead bubbled around him. It was like he was enclosed in some kind of invisible ball that the lightning could not penetrate, only spark around the outside. He felt no shock, no burn, and no pain. Then the bolt dissipated. Ben took the brief opportunity to kick his heels and speed off towards the shoreline, as fast as his damaged broom could muster.  
  
It wasn't until Kitty saw that Ben was out of range of the Draco's blasts that she noticed Snape standing beside her. She jumped back.  
  
"Get away from her." Ben hollered as he touched down next to Kitty. "We know about your plans professor Snape!"  
  
"Quickly" Snape said ignoring Ben's accusations. "It won't hold him for long."  
  
"It's Draco!" Kitty said. "He was after." she stopped speaking. She didn't want to tell Snape that Harry was in the box that they had just rescued from Draco. Kitty was still unsure of where his true loyalties lay.  
  
"I know its Draco." Snape replied. He put his hand on their backs and gave them a shove. "Now run!"  
  
Kitty and Ben ran back up the hill towards the school.  
  
"Stop!" Kitty cried out. "We have to open it up now." For all they knew Harry had already suffocated.  
  
Ben placed the box in the ground on the crest of the hill and took out his wand. "Alohamora!" he shouted at the box. The lock popped open and Kitty quickly pried open the lid. Inside, Harry lay motionless. Kitty picked him up in her arms.  
  
"Oh Harry.Ben we're too late."  
  
Ben leaned his ear close to the cat's chest to see if he could hear a heartbeat.  
  
Kitty held her breath as she thought she saw and eyelid flicker.  
  
Harry?  
  
Thank...you.  
  
Kitty let out a squeal of happiness. "He's alive Oh Harry..Ben, he's okay."  
  
Ben smiled with a sigh of relief.  
  
Let's just leave it at alive.at least. I'm stuck in this cat form though. He cast a spell and stuck me like this.  
  
Kitty had been right afterall. Draco knew he couldn't overpower Harry in his human form so he waited until he could catch him like this, unable to speak the spells to defend himself.  
  
Their brief reunion was interrupted when they heard yelling from back at the shore. It was Snape. "Stay where you are!" he shouted.  
  
Draco stepped off the boat and walked towards Snape. "Can you believe those little freaks attacked me?"  
  
"It seemed to me that you were the one attacking them." Snape replied his wand still firmly gripped in his hand.  
  
"Why would I want to do that? I was out on the lake looking for a place to practice my new..."  
  
"You insist on keeping up this façade? I KNOW who you are." Snape interrupted. "We found your brother."  
  
The colour drained from Magnus's face. Snape knew he was really Draco. "Your brother is doing quite well considering that you've had him locked up for almost a week.  
  
"Little traitorous sneak." Draco cursed. "He always was the weak one in the family."  
  
"It's all a matter of perspective really." Snape smugly replied. He raised his wand towards Draco. It was the offering for a Wizards Duel. "You bring shame to the name of Salazar Slytherin."  
  
Draco howled and fired a crimson blast from his wand.  
  
"Shield!" Snape called out and the flames bent around him in a ball like the lightning had done around Ben.  
  
"I will not be robbed of my prize." Draco screamed as he fired again and again each time deflected by Snape's counter magic.  
  
"We'd better get help." Kitty said as the two Wizards dueled on the shore of the lake. They could barely be seen in amongst all the magic that was being tossed back and forth. Draco now levitated up in the air above Snape, raining magic down from above.  
  
"You stay with Harry. "I'll get.." Ben looked up to see Headmaster Black striding towards them.  
  
He stopped at the children's side. "Are you both okay?" he asked.  
  
Kitty and Ben both nodded.  
  
"Is he okay?" Black said pointing at the cat. It WAS his Godson after all.  
  
Kitty nodded again as she saw Headmaster Black drop onto all fours and shape shift right before their eyes in to a large black dog. He took off racing full tilt towards the shore in half the time it would have taken a human to run. Snape seemed to be weakening under Draco's attacks. As Black neared the fight he rose up again and changed back to human form. Adding his power to Snape's, Draco didn't stand a chance.  
  
Within minutes the battle was over and Draco sat subdued on the beach his wand shattered into pieces, his hands and feet bound in mystical irons. He sat in silence, but with the spell keeping Kitty out from his mind now broken, she could hear the unspoken cursing in his mind.  
  
Snape was limping but he made his way up the hill towards where Kitty and Ben stood waiting.  
  
"Are you children okay?" he asked. Kitty was surprised yet again at the gentleness in his voice. It was only the second time she had seen him look genuinely concerned.  
  
They both nodded. Kitty held Kanin in her arms, stroking his soft fur.  
  
"How did you know that we needed your help?"  
  
"I was able to reverse the spell put on Magnus and he was able to fill me in on Draco's treachery. Then while I was on my way to talk to Sirius about it, I saw young master Morrison here, out of class." He flashed a glare at Ben, "I followed him out, intending on reprimanding him for detention when I saw the duel on the lake."  
  
"It wasn't much of a duel." Ben muttered. "I didn't even get a chance to fight back."  
  
"All the better. " Snape replied. "You don't know how dangerous Draco Malfoy is. I was quite surprised to see you managed to avoid his attacks twice. You should count yourself lucky."  
  
"It was skill. Not luck!" Ben said defiantly clutching his broom.  
  
Headmaster Black came up the hill with Draco levitating beside him, "Severus..we need to get Madame Pomfrey to look at that immediately." He said pointing at Snape's leg where a long burn ran down the length of his right leg. "It could be cursed or poisonous. Can you make it there all right or should I call for Hagrid? "  
  
Snape shook his head. "No. I can make it just fine."  
  
"Children please follow us back to the school, "Black said calmly"..and bring my godson with you."  
  
Snape looked at Black with an eyebrow raised. "Potter is here?" The way he said 'Potter' it was as if he was speaking a bad word, one that he despised saying.  
  
Kanin lifted his head and looked up at Snape.  
  
"Why do you think Draco's here?" Black replied. "Come on children."  
  
Chapter 22 - "Explanations"  
  
Kitty sat in Headmaster Blacks office up in the west tower. Ben was poking at some objects on one of the shelves lined with all sorts of strange objects and books.  
  
In the other room Kitty knew Black was trying to counter the spell Draco had used to keep Harry locked in his transfiguration. They had dropped Snape off in the hospital wing and Draco off in the hands of the dreaded Mr. Filch. Every so often she heard Black shouting a spell only to be followed by a string of cursing in some language Kitty did not recognize. "I don't get it...what?.what are you doing that for?.oh..good idea Harry."  
  
She heard Headmaster Black call from the other room. "Kitty, please.. can you come in here a second?"  
  
Kitty jumped off the big velvet red chair on which she sat and walked towards the door. Opening the door she saw Harry sitting in the center of a large room (a room far bigger than could possibly have been from the outside).  
  
Hi Kitty.  
  
"Hi Harry." She said to the cat. "You called sir?" she said as she faced Headmaster Black.  
  
"I need you to ask Harry some questions. I can't talk to him like this."  
  
"You know too???" Kitty replied, surprised that Headmaster Black knew she could read minds.  
  
"Of course I do child. And once we have Harry back to normal I will explain some things that should have been explained to you a long long time ago."  
  
Kitty smiled. Finally someone was going to give her some answers. "I think I know what you need." She faced Harry again.  
  
He needs to know what spell Draco used on you. Kitty spoke to Harry  
  
I've been trying to tell Sirius but he's not very good at pantomime. Kitty could hear Harry laughing in her mind. Tell him Draco used the transfiguration permanency spell, not a locking spell.  
  
Permanency? You mean you are going to be a cat forever?  
  
Harry laughed again. No, that's only the name for the spell. Almost every spell has a counter.  
  
Kitty relayed the information to Black who slapped himself in the forehead for not having guessed it before. "Yes that makes sense.thank you Kitty for your help...ALL your help."  
  
"Retractum Feline Eternalis." He shouted as he shot a wave of blue light form the tip of his wand.  
  
Before her eyes Kitty saw the cat Kanin grow and transform slowly into something more man shaped. He stood upright on his hind paws. His fur started to fall out as he brushed it off himself. His long striped tail grew shorter and shorter until it was gone. He blinked at Kitty as his the pupils of his eyes changed from that of a cats to that of a human. Headmaster Black grabbed his spare cloak and tossed it towards Harry just as the last of the fur was falling out. Harry quickly wrapped it around himself, his face flushed with embarrassment.  
  
Within minutes the transformation was complete and Harry had returned to his true form.  
  
"Thank you Sirius." Harry said. "It's hard to invoke a counter spell when your vocal chords can only mew and hiss."  
  
Professor Black gave him a hug. "I shudder to think how closely I came to losing you."  
  
Kitty felt kind of awkward standing there to witness the happy reunion of godfather and godson.  
  
Harry turned towards Kitty. He was a lot taller than Kitty had imagined and had to bend down quite a bit to look her in the face. "I cannot begin to tell you how much I am obliged to you and your friend Ben for the rescue." There was a loud crash from just outside the door. Black snapped his fingers and the doors swung open as an eavesdropping Ben stumbled into the room.  
  
"I.uh..um...I was just." Ben stuttered at a loss for words to explain himself. "  
  
Black waved his hand in the air. "No matter. I was just about to request your entrance anyways Master Morrison, since this involves the both of you."  
  
Harry stood up and shook Ben's hand. "Thank you for your masterful flying. I do not know how you managed to avoid Draco's attacks but I'm certainly glad you did. I owe you both my life."  
  
Ben blushed. Harry Potter was very well respected in the magic community, almost on par with Albus Dumbledore, the former headmaster of Hogwarts. How he wished his parents could see him now.  
  
"Why?" Kitty stepped forth and boldly asked.  
  
"Why?" Harry repeated.  
  
"Why was Draco after you?"  
  
"To kill me no doubt for getting him expelled back when we were bitter school rivals. That, and he blames me for the downfall of his family name."  
  
"But how did he know you were here, undercover as a cat?" Ben added.  
  
"I don't think he did at first. He must have obtained that information from a mole in the Ministry. I'll have to look into that when I get back."  
  
"So why were you here to begin with?" Ben stepped into ask.  
  
"So many questions." Harry said as he sat down on a chair and motioned for the children to do the same on the couch facing him. "Kitty.all this started before you were born. Back when the threat of Lord Voldemort put fear into us all." Harry looked at Sirius. No doubt Harry had always had the most to fear from the evil wizard who had repeatedly tried to kill him throughout his adolescence. "You've heard of Albus Dumbledore right?"  
  
"The former headmaster of Hogwarts back when you were a student here." Kitty replied. Ben was no longer astonished at her uncanny memory. She had pretty much memorized the History of Hogwarts textbook.  
  
"Yes. " Harry nodded. "Well he knew of a prophecy about the birth of a special child that would one day possess great power."  
  
"Like you." Ben interrupted.  
  
Harry laughed at Ben's remark but Kitty could see him knotting his hands together as if the story was difficult to tell. Perhaps it reminded him of his own childhood.  
  
He continued on with the story, "With the threat of Voldemort about, Dumbledore carefully watched over this special child. With the growth of the second rising of the Deatheaters, Lord Voldemorts followers, Dumbledore was worried that it was no longer possible to keep the child safe under his watch so he decided to hide the child. Placing a powerful spell on the child he locked away the child's powers so that they would remain hidden for as long as possible. If Voldemort found out that such potential existed in a child then there would have been no stopping him from trying to either kill or sway the child to the side of evil. What he didn't know about he would not covet. That was Dumbledore's plan."  
  
"OH!" Ben suddenly exclaimed. "OH oh oh..I get it...Kitty is that child!"  
  
"Yes." Harry said. He looked Kitty in the eyes. "Telepathy is indeed a rare talent in the Magical Community but what Voldemort would covet most would be your power to see the future."  
  
"So I am a witch.. then why can't I do any magic?" Kitty asked. In the Muggle world she had always felt like an outcast because she could unconsciously pry into people's thoughts. At Hogwarts she felt as much an outcast because she couldn't do magic like the rest of the students.  
  
"The spell that Dumbledore cast on you, kept you from performing magic. He tried to lock away your potential special talents but they came about on their own as your grew."  
  
"So I AM a witch then?"  
  
Harry laughed. "Yes! That's what I've been telling you all this time. The only reason why you haven't been able to cast any magic is because of Dumbledore's spell. I have been trying to find a counter for the spell at the ministry but haven't had any luck so far. "  
  
"Then why did Snape invite me to the school?" Kitty asked. "Did he not know I couldn't do any magic?"  
  
"I don't think so." Headmaster Black said. "I think Severus only got part of the information about your gifts but that information was enough to want you into his house. He's a good Wizard at heart but is always very self serving."  
  
"When the ministry found out you had received a letter of acceptance to Hogwarts then I was sent in to watch out for you. It wasn't until I was here disguised as Kanin that I learned that it was Snape that had sent you the letter. My guess is that Professor Trelawney found out who and where you were and bribed Snape into conspiring with her. Afterall, she's just as self serving as he is and the deal was mutually beneficial to them both."  
  
Kitty smiled. She was pleased that she had already figured out most of Snape and Trelawney's' conspiracy herself. "Trelawney wanted a Quidditch player who could take the Hufflepuff team to the cup and Snape wanted a mind reader to add to the prestige of his house."  
  
"Correct." Harry said. "Trelawney knew she couldn't fix the Sorting without his help. Snape is one of the best potions Masters I have ever known and he was able to concoct a potion that made the Sorting Hat confused, so that he was then able to influence the Hat's decisions and put you two into houses of his choosing."  
  
"I knew it!" Kitty said. "Right from the start! I knew I was in the wrong house and none of you listened to me."  
  
"Indeed you were correct but we could not bring the conspiracy out into the open until we knew the whole story." Black added.  
  
"You needed to know how Professor Trelawney got the information about me in the first place right?" Kitty deduced.  
  
"Exactly." Harry nodded. "We knew the Sorting ritual was wrong. We suspected Snape and Trelawney's involvement just as you did but we needed to know how they got the information about Dumbledore's prophecy. That was information that was very well hidden within the walls of the Ministry."  
  
"It wasn't until Draco Malfoy, disguised as his brother Magnus, cast the spell on me in the kitchen trapping me in that blasted cat form, that I made the connection. Draco Malfoy was one of my bitterest enemies back when we were students. He bullied me and my friends at every opportunity but in the face of Voldemort's threat s on my life, Draco was the least of my concern. He accidentally found out about the prophecy and your whereabouts and then used that as bait to get me here. He was the one who told Trelawney about you. He then had only to wait for me to show up."  
  
"How did Draco know about Kitty?" Ben asked.  
  
Harry stood up and walked over to a basin of water that sat on a pedestal in the corner of the room. "This is all we have left of Albus Dumbledore, one of the greatest Wizards of our time. The pool of thoughts." Ben and Kitty stepped up and gazed in the still water. "This is the place where Dumbledore would place his thoughts when they got too cluttered in his head. I accidentally found it when I was a student here and Dumbledore showed me the trial of the deatheaters with it. When I graduated he showed me one other thing he stored in the pool. He showed me a baby, born of muggle parents that he asked me to watch out for her no matter what. I gave him my word. That baby was you. The thought he had placed in the pool was the prophecy HE had seen,"  
  
"You mean...Dumbledore had visions too? Kitty asked  
  
Harry and Black both smiled. "Now you see what could become? The only one Voldemort feared was Dumbledore. He had something that set him aside from other Wizards. Something that allowed him wisdom and confidence beyond any other. The same strength that you might wield one day." Harry looked away from the pool.  
  
"So Draco found out from the Pool of Thoughts."  
  
Harry nodded. "He must have gone into the pool just as I did. He must have seen the same things I did." At the time I'm sure he didn't know the importance of the vision but over the years he must have pieced together the whole picture."  
  
"And he used that valuable information to draw me out."  
  
Everything made sense now. The conspiracy Kitty and Ben had uncovered about Snape and Trelawney fixing the Sorting Ritual was only a small part of the larger plot of Draco Malfoy's attempt to kill Harry Potter.  
  
"Geez Kitty." Ben said. "You were right. This IS all your fault." He laughed.  
  
Kitty smacked him in the arm.  
  
"Ow."  
  
"What's going to happen to Draco, Trelawney and Snape then?" Kitty asked.  
  
"Draco is on a one way trip to Azkaban." Headmaster Black said. "A place he should have been put a long time ago as far as I'm concerned. Trelawney will be tried as a co-conspirator to his plot to kill Harry. She was in contact with Draco and might have known that she was part of the set up."  
  
"That's what the jury must determine." Harry added. He was still unsure of how much Trelawney knew about Draco's intention to use Kitty as bait.  
  
"And Snape?" Ben asked.  
  
"Snape acted selfishly and upset a great Hogwarts tradition by altering the Sorting Ritual. I expect we will have him relieved of headmastership, but until we determine how much he was involved in Draco's plan his punishment will not go beyond the bounds of the school law."  
  
Ben jumped to his feet, his mouth hanging open. "You mean he's gonna get off scot free. That's' not fair."  
  
"Need I remind you Master Morrison that he saved your life twice in the last few weeks?" Black said, his stern glare sending Ben back to his seat. "  
  
"Now, if you have no more questions I must take leave of you and report back to the ministry. " Harry said. "I have a lot of work to do. WE still haven't found a way to counter the spell Dumbledore placed on you. Until then I suppose you will just have to simply learn your lessons and then practice them once we've lifted the spell. I'm sure your Professors will understand once everything has been explained to them."  
  
"Will that be before or after she fails all her classes?" Ben asked. Kitty rolled her eyes but in fact it was true.  
  
Kitty raised her hand. "Just one more question Harry."  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Are we going to be re-sorted?"  
  
Harry looked at Black. Neither of them had really contemplated that.  
  
Headmaster Black shrugged. "Yes Kitty. It has never been done before but I will consult the Hat and see if we can resort the first year students, those who wish to be re-sorted that is.  
  
Kitty smiled. At last she was going to get out of Slytherin.  
  
Chapter 23 - "The Re-Sorting"  
  
The Re-sorting was called for two days after the attack on Harry. The school was a-twitter with the heroic tale of how Kitty and Ben were able to save Harry from the clutches of evil. The whole event was supposed to be kept a secret, so of course, everybody at Hogwarts knew about it. The only thing that was truly kept a secret was Kitty's prophetic powers. It was better if the students only knew that her inability to do magic and illnesses were due to a spell that had been placed on her that the Ministry of Magic was still trying to break.  
  
Kitty looked up at Ben sitting at the head of the Great Hall on the stool. The Sorting hat firmly perched in his head.  
  
"Gryffindor!" The Hat called out. Cheers went up from the Gryffindor table as Ben joined his new housemates. As Ben sat down at his new House table he caught eyes with Deaner.  
  
He laughed. "Next time we meet you little twerp I'll be facing off against you."  
  
"They made you the seeker again?"  
  
Deaner nodded.  
  
"As it should be!" Ben exclaimed. He had always felt bad that Deaner had been moved out of his position when Ben arrived. But after finding out that Ben's arrival was fixed it was good to hear that Deaner was being awarded his rightful position on the team again.  
  
"We play you next Wednesday. That is, of course, if you make the Gryffindor team."  
  
The colour drained form Ben's face as it hit him. That was true, if Trelawney had fixed the Sorting to get him into Hufflepuff, if his whole scholarship was part of her scam, then perhaps he would not be allowed to play on the Gryffindor team until tryouts next year.  
  
He felt a hand on his should. It was Professor McGonagall, the Gryffindor Headmaster. "Don't worry." She said to Deaner. "He'll be there."  
  
Ben breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
The Sorting Hat continued re-sorting the students who wished to be re- sorted into their new houses. For the most part all the Hat's initial sortings were still correct. Only a few, other than Ben so far, had to shift houses.  
  
It was Kitty's turn next.  
  
She approached the Sorting Hat, this time without hesitation.  
  
Snape was not present at the Headmaster table having been relieved of duty until a full inquiry could be held.  
  
She looked over at Magnus who had almost made a full recovery from the petrification spell his brother Draco had put on him. Only a slight stiffness remained as he strained to turn his head to watch.  
  
Kitty sat down on the stool as Headmaster Black placed the Hat on her head.  
  
The Hat scrunched itself down for a second and then in a clear voice shouted out. "Slytherin!"  
  
Kitty sat astonished. "But.but that can't be right. I thought I was supposed to be in another house."  
  
Headmaster Black leaned down to whisper to her. "Indeed you true house is Slytherin. Snape did not have to sway the Sorting Hat to his desire. The Hat had already chosen that house for you." He removed the Hat from her head.  
  
"But the feelings.the wrongness."  
  
"Perhaps your feelings are not as clearly understood as you thought." He smiled at her and ushered her to re-join the Slytherin table.  
  
Professor Lupin, the werewolf Professor teaching them Care of Magical Creatures was the newly appointed Slytherin Headmaster.  
  
For some reason, Kitty smiled back at him and ran over to rejoin her old housemates. She looked across at Ben who was getting introduced to his new Gryffindor housemates.  
  
So it was all for nothing. Kitty's whispered in Ben's mind.  
  
No it wasn't. We uncovered a plot, found about your past, helped the students find their true houses and saved Harry Potter. I wouldn't call that nothing.  
  
Magnus slid over next to Kitty. "It's no so bad is it? Being in Slytherin?"  
  
Kitty had misjudged the house from the start, she had misjudged Magnus. But the feeling of uncertainty was no longer there. "No.it isn't. It isn't bad at all."  
  
Suddenly the great oak doors to the Great Hall flew open with a bang and Snape walked into the room. In his arms he held a cat. He walked slowly down the aisle, passing the stares of all the students in the room. He made his way directly towards Kitty.  
  
He didn't say anything at first as he handed the small cat over to her. There was no headache and she could see clearly in his mind his utmost apology.  
  
"Thank you Professor." She stroked the cat's soft fur from tip to tail. "I think I will name him Kanin." Kitty said. She looked up to see that Snape was smiling.  
  
THE END 


End file.
